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CHRISTOPHER     WORDSWORTH 

BISHOP  OF  LINCOLN 


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Christopher  Wordsworth 

BISHOP  OF  LINCOLN 
1807— 1885 


JOHN     HENRY     OVERTON 

CANON   OF   LINCOLN    AND   RECTOR    OF   EPWORTH 


ELIZABETH    WORDSWORTH 

PRINCIPAL   OF    LADY    MARGARET    HALL,   OXFORD 


"Fcritas  in  CCariiatc 


With  Portraits 


RIVINGTONS 

WATERLOO    PLACE,    LONDON 

MDCCCLXXXVIII 


PREFACE 

The  late  Bishop  of  Lincoln  once  expressed  a  wish 
that  his  eldest  daughter  should  write  his  life,— 
should  such  a  life  be  called  for.  As  she  felt,  how- 
ever, her  own  incompetence  for  such  a  task  on  a 
variety  of  grounds,  and  also  the  drawbacks  which 
must  attend  on  a  memoir  written  exclusively  by 
near  relations,  aid  was  called  in  from  outside  the 
family  circle.  It  has  been  thought  best  not  to 
attempt  to  draw  a  hard  and  fast  line  between  the 
portions  of  the  work  which  to  a  certain  extent  were 
the  production  of  different  hands.  The  difference 
of  style  will  probably  in  many  cases  speak  for  itself; 
but  the  whole  volume  has  been  carefully  gone  over 
by  both  of  those  who  are  mainly  responsible  for  its 
contents.  The  book  has  also  had  the  inestimable 
advantage  of  being  revised  by  the  late  Bishop's  elder 
and  only-surviving  brother,  the  venerable  Bishop 
of  S.  Andrew's,  and  very  valuable  aid  has  been 
given  by  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  and  the 
Bishop's  two  sons,  the  Bishop  of  Salisbury  and  the 
Rev.  Canon  Wordsworth,  and  by  other  members 
of  the  Wordsworth  family.     The  chapter  on  Con- 


206G446 


PREFACE. 


vocation  is  due  to  the  kindness  of  the  Rev.  Canon 
Perry,  of  whose  work  as  an  English  Church  historian 
the  late  Bishop  often  expressed  the  highest  opinion  ; 
and  that  on  Foreign  Churches  is  to  a  great  extent 
the  production  of  his  old  and  valued  friend  and 
examining  chaplain,  the  Rev.  Canon  Meyrick.  The 
names  of  the  Dean  of  Chichester  and  of  many  other 
friends,  to  one  and  all  of  whom  the  warmest  thanks 
are  tendered,  present  themselves  in  due  course. 

It  may  seem  to  some  that  a  comparatively  small 
space  has  been  allotted  to  some  very  important 
subjects;  but  the  work  has  not  been  intended  to 
supersede,  but  to  supplement  that  which  the  Bishop 
has  himself  left  behind  him  in  his  various  publica- 
tions. To  go  thoroughly  into  all  the  events  in  which 
he  took  a  leading  part  would  practically  be  to  write 
the  history  of  the  Church  of  England  for  the  last 
fifty  years. 

It  has  not  been  attempted  to  give  the  history  of 
the  Bishop's  life  year  by  year,  as  it  was  thought 
better  to  group  the  various  subjects  together  under 
specific  heads.  In  a  life  so  varied,  a  mere  narration 
of  events  would  have  given  a  very  inadequate  picture 
of  the  man,  and  been  very  perplexing  to  the  reader. 
A  table  of  the  principal  dates  in  the  Bishop's  life 
will,  however,  l^e  found  at  the  commencement  of  the 
book. 


C  ONTEiYTS 

CHAPTER  I 

PARENTAGE   AND    CHILDHOOD. 

PAGE 

Hereditary  characteristics — The  Lloyd  family — His  father's  marriage- 
Extracts  from  his  mother's  letters — Death  of  his  mother    .         .         .       i 

CHAPTER  II. 

SCHOOL    AND    COLLEGE    LIFE. 

Winchester  under  Dr.  Gabell — Winchester  under  Dr.  Williams — Words- 
worth as  a  prefect— Letter  from  the  Master  of  Trinity — Verses 
written  to  his  brother  Charles — "Who  wrote  Icon  Basilike  ?  "  — 
Tour  iu  the  Isle  of  W^ight — Letter  to  his  brother  John — Harrow  and 
Winchester — Interval  between  school  and  college — -Journal— Under- 
graduate life — University  distinctions        .         ,         .         .         .         -15 


CHAPTER  III. 

EARLY  MANHOOD    AND    EARLY   TRAVELS. 

Influence  of  the  Rydal  household — First  visit  to  Paris — Letters  from 
William  Wordsworth — Letter  from  Dora  Wordsworth — Religion  in 
Cambridge  in  1S30 — Beneficent  influences  on  his  life — Early  friends 
— Travels  in  Sicily,  Greece,  &c. — Illness  at  Athens  — Sojourn  at 
Rome — Public  Orator — Head  Master  of  Harrow       .         .         .         .58 


CHAPTER  IV. 

HARROW. 

Letter  from  Mr.  Beresford-Hope — Efforts  to  improve  the  school — His 
marriage — The  Frere  family — Letter  of  his  sister-in-law — Fire  at 
Harrow  in  1838 — Troubles  at  Harrow— Illness  and  death  of  John 
Wordsworth — Candidate  for  Regius  Professorship  of  Divinity — 
Letters  from  Harrow  pupils — Pecuniaiy  losses  and  ill-health     .         .81 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  V. 

EARLY    WESTMINSTER    LIFE. 

PACK 

Residence  at  Westminstei- — Preaching  in  the  Aljbey — Pamphlets  on 
Maynooth — Letters  to  Mrs.  Wordsworth — ^Death  of  the  Master  of 
Trinity — Westminster  Spiritual  Aid  P\md — Foundation  of  "  St. 
John's  House"' — Letter  to  William  Wordsworth — Sermons  in 
Westminster  Abbey  .......-.*.    107 


CHAPTER  VI. 

WESTMINSTER    ANJi    STANFORD-IN-THE-VALi:. 

S.P.G.  tour  in  Ireland — Stanford-in-lhe-Vale — Life  as  a  country  clergy- 
man— Letter  from  Rev.  T.  W.  Elrington — Letter  from  Rev.  L. 
G.  Maine — Influence  of  Bishop  Wilberforce — Work  as  a  parish 
priest — Life  at  Stanford — The  Bishopric  of  Gibraltar — Dr.  Stanley 
made  Dean  of  Westminster — Dr.  Wordsworth  on  the  appointment — 
Friendly  relations  with  the  Dean       .         .         .         .         .  -   130 

CHAPTER     VII. 

CONl  -OCA  TION. 

First  attempts  at  revival— Privileges  of  Lower  House — Discussion  on 
Church  discipline — Speech  on  Courts  of  Appeal — Speech  on  Exten- 
sion of  episcopate — Proposed  alteration  of  Prayer-Book — "Essays 
and  Reviews  "^Sponsors — Home  episcopate — Foreign  Churches — 
Dr.  McCaul — Election  of  Prolocutor — Diocesan  synods — -Reform 
of  Convocation — The  Conscience  Clause — Catholicity  of  the  Church 
of  England — The  Church  of  South  Africa — Pan-Anglican  Conference 
— Encyclical — Natal — Letters  to  Archdeacon  Harrison — Letter  from 
liishop  of  Pcterborougli     .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         -159 


CHAPTER  VHl. 

THE    EPISCOrATE. — FIRST    THREE    YEARS. 

Offer  (if  the  Bishopric  and  acceptance — Farewell  to  Stanford — Journal 
— Qualification  for  a  I5ishopric — Church  (Quarterly  on  Bishop 
Wordsworth — Speech  at  S.  Swithin's,  Lincoln — Dr.  Temples  ap- 
pointment to  Exeter — Suffragan  Bishops — First  Suffragan  Bishop 
of  Nottingham — First  charge — Poor  benefices — Diocesan  Synod — 
"Synod"  and  "Conference" — First  Diocesan  Conference — Church 
Congress  at  Nottingham    ....         ..... 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE   EPISCOPATE. BURNING   QUESTIONS. 

PAGE 

Pastoral  to  Wesleyan  Methodists — Owston  Ferry  tombstone  case — Ireni- 

cum     Wesleyanum — Temperance     societies — Great    Coaies    case — 

Sporting  clergy — Ritual  question — Public  Worship  Regulation  Act 

— Letter  of  Canon  Hole — The  Burials  Bill — Letter  from  Di".  Liddon.  241 
S 


CHAPTER  X. 

THE    EPISCOPATE.- — PRACTICAL    WORK  IN   THE   DIOCESE. 

The  cathedral  system — Elementary  education — S.  Paul's  Mission  House, 
Burgh — Scholae  Cancellarii — University  education— New  statutes  of 
Lincohr  College — Foreign  missions — Home  missions — Nottingham — ■ 
Subdivision  of  the  diocese — Ordinations — Confirmation  visits — In- 
terest in  local  associations — The  studies  of  the  clergy — Literary 
work  of  the  clei^gy — Letters  on  literary  subjects — Letters  on  paroclrial 
subjects — The  Bishop's  relations  to  the  laity — Miscellaneous  letters — 
Letters  to  liis  children — Letter  to  Lady  Harewood — Letters  from 
General  Gordon — Letter  to  General  Gordon — City  of  Lincoln — 
Conclusion  of  his  last  pastoral .  275 


CHAPTER  XL 

INTERCOURSE    WITH   FOREIGN  CHURCHES. 

France — Italy — Vatican  Council  and  Germany — Greece  and  the  Oriental 

Cliurch 344 


CHAPTER  XII. 

LITERARY   WORK'. 

Works  on  Greece — Latin  Grammar — Bentley's  Correspondence — Tlieu- 
philus  Anglicanus — Memoirs  of  William  Wordsworth — S.  Hippo- 
lytus— Commentary  on  the  Bible — The  Holy  Year — Miscellanies, 
Literary  and  Religious — Theocritus — Church  History — Harrow  Ser- 
mons—  Hulsean  Lectures — Westminster  Sermons  —  Sermons  on 
Church  of  Ireland — Boyle  Lectures — Sermons  as  Bishop — Last  works  393 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

CLOSING   DAYS. 

PAGE 

Beginning  of  soitows — Illness  of  Mrs.  Wordsworth — Last  Confirmations — 
Last  visit  to  old  haunts — Beginning  of  last  illness — Ilarewood — 
Harrogate — Death  of  JNIrs.  Wordsworth — Appointment  of  Dr. 
King — Last  attendance  at  Harewood  Church — The  Bishop's  death — 
The  discipline  of  sorrow — The  funeral — The  graves  at  Riseholme      .  461 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

PERSONAL    REMINISCENCES. 

II is  method  with  his  children — His  characteristics — His  i^eading  in 
church — His  tastes  in  music  and  painting — Daily  life  at  Riseholme — 
His  studies — Mrs.  Wordsworth — His  classical  tastes — Tastes  in 
poetry — Tastes  in  prose  literature — General  characteristics — Recol- 
lections of  Dean  Burgon — Recollections  of  Archbishop  Benson — 
jVIemorial  sermon,  "  Love  and  Discipline" — Monument  in  Lincoln 
Cathedral 4SS 


I^JI^KX 535 


ILL  US  TRA  TION S 

I'ORTKAIT   01"   ClIRTSTOI'lIER   WORDSWORTH   ....      FrOltispiecC 
I'ORIRAIT  AS  BiSHOi' To  face  p.  20S 


CHRONOLOGICAL  TABLE 


CHRISTOPHER  WORDSWORTH'S  LIFE. 


1804.  Oct.  6.  Chr.  Wordsworth  married  Priscilla  Lloyd. 
1S05.  July  I.  John  Wordsworth  born. 

1806.  Aug.  22.  Charles  Wordsworth  born. 

1807.  Oct.  30.  Christopher  Wordsworth  born. 
181 1.  April  II.  Susanna  Hatley  Frere  born. 

181 5.  Oct.  7.  Priscilla  Wordsworth  died  at  Bocking. 
1820.  Dr.  Wordsworth    Master    of    Trinity.      John    and 

Christopher  to  Commoners,  Winchester. 
1825.  First  Winchester  and  Harrow  match. 

1827.  Christopher  W.    First  Class  Freshman's  Coll.  Exam. 

First    Latin    Verse    Prize    {IpJiigeina   in   Ajilide), 
Trinity. 

1828.  C.  W.^  wins    First    Eng.  Declamation    (Hooper's). 

First  Latin  Declamation    (Trinity).     First    Latin 
Verse  Prize  (Trinity). 

1829.  Craven  Scholar.     First  Reading  Prize,  Trinity. 

1830.  Fourteenth   Senior  Optimc.  Math.  Tripos.     Senior 

Classic.     B.A. 

1832.  Travels  in  Italy  and  Greece. 

1833.  Ordained  Deacon,  by  Bp.  Kaye,  at  Buckden.     M.A. 

1834.  Classical  Lecturer  at  Trinity.     Examiner  in   Clas- 

sical Tripos. 

1835.  Ordained  Priest  by  Bp.  Percy  of  Carlisle. 

1836.  Public  Orator. 
Master  of  Harrow. 
Athens  and  Attica. 

^  Unless    otherwise  specified,  all  subsequent  notices  refer   to 
Christopher  Wordsworth.     All  his  publications  are  in  italics. 


CHRONOLOGICAL  TABLE. 


1837.  Pompeian  Inscriptions. 

1838.  April  17.  Spital  Sermon  on  Heathen  and  Christian 

PliihintJiropy. 
Dec.  6.  Married  S.  H.  Frere. 

1839.  B.D.,  and  D.D.,  per  litt.  regias. 
Greece,  Pictorial  and  Descriptive. 

Dec.  31.  John  W.  died  at  Trinity  Lodge. 

1 84 1.  Preces   Selectee  for    Harrow.     Sermons.     King  Ed- 

zuard  VI.  Latin  Grammar.  Dr.  C.  W.  resigns 
Mastership  of  Trinity. 

1842.  Candidate   for   Regius    Professorship    of    Divinity. 

Bent  leys  Correspondence. 

1843.  Sept.  21.  John  Wordsworth  born. 
Oct.  3.   Theophilus  Anglicanns. 

1844.  Canon  of  Westminster.     Theocritus.    Discourses  on 

PiLhlic  Education. 

1845.  Maynooth  Pamphlets.     Diary  in  France. 

1846.  Feb.  2.  Dr.  C.  W.  dies  at  Buxted. 

1847.  Hulsean    Lecturer.     Letters   to    Gondon.     National 

Education. 

1848.  Christopher  Wordsworth  born.     Sermon  on  RigJit- 

eousness  exalteth  a  Nation.  Hulsean  Lectures  on 
Canon  of  Scripture.  Report  of  West.  Sp.  Aid 
Fund. 

1849.  Hulsean  Lectu7'es  on  Apocalypse,  on  the  Mart  of  Sin. 

Funeral  Sermon  on  Queen  Adelaide.  Elements  of 
Instruction  concerning  the  ChurcJi. 

1850.  Vicar    of    Stanford.      William     Wordsworth     dies 

(April  23).  Occasional  Sermons;  First  Series 
chiefly  on  Gorliam  Cojitroversy.  Is  the  Church  of 
Rome  Babylon  ?  Beautiful  Scenery.  The  Prelude, 
by  W.  W.,  first  published. 

185 1.  Memoirs  of  W.  Wordsivorth.     Occasional  Sermons , 

Second  Series. 

1852.  Proctor  in   Convocation   for  the  Chapter.     Charles 

W.,  Bishop  of  S.  Andrew's.  Occ.  S.,  Third  Scries. 
Occ.  S.,  Fourth  .Scries.  Scrnioiis  on  the  Irish 
Church. 


CHRONOLOGICAL  TABLE. 


Oct.  7.  Tivo  Lectures  on  Millennium. 

1853.  At  Paris,  Aug.,  Sept.     5.  Hippolytus,  &c. 

1854.  Boyle   Lecturer.     Founding   of  Anglo-Continental 

Society.  Notes  at  Paris.  Boyle  Lectures  on  Re- 
ligious Restoration  (Fifth  Series  of  Occasional 
Sermons). 

1855.  Dorothy    Wordsworth    died    at    Rydal,    Jan.    25. 

Funeral  Sermon  on  Joshua  Watson.  Remarks  on 
M.  Bunsen's  Hippolytus.  Restoration  of  Stanford 
Church. 

1856.  Tracts  on  Lncrease  of  Episcopate.     The  Four  Gos- 

pels, Oct.  22. 

1857.  '^^xm.ows,  on  Divorce.    APleaforLidia.     Occasional 

Sermons,  Sixth  Series.  The  Acts  OF  THE 
Apostles,  May  24. 

1858.  What  mean  ye  by   this  Service?     (Nave  Services, 

West.  Abbey.) 

1859.  Feb.   25.     S.    Paul's    Epistles.      Occasional    5., 

Seventh  Series.     (Deceased  Wife's  Sister,  &c.) 
i860.  On  2gth  Canon.    General  Epistles  and  Revela- 
tion, Oct.  25.     Letter  to  Viscount  Dungannon,  on 
Subdivision  of  Dioceses. 

1 86 1.  Lectures   on    Lnspiration ;   and    Lntcrpretaiion.      Ls 

Convocation  a  Court  of  Heresy  ?  A  Reply  to  Prof. 
Jozi'ctfs  Essay. 

1862.  Visits   Italy,    May   13— July  8.      Tre  Lettere.     The 

Holy  Year.     Bicentenary  Common  Prayer  Book. 

1863.  fournal  of  Tour  in  Italy.     Tzuenty  Reasons  for  Lncr. 

of  Episcopate.  Remarks  on  Proposed  Admission  of 
Dean  Stanley.  The  Tzuo  Tercentenaries.  "  Son  of 
God:'  "Son  of  Man.''  (Articles  in  Smith's 
Diet,  of  the  Bible.) 

1864.  Oct.  10.  Genesis  and  Exodus.     Synodical fudg- 

mcnts. 

1865.  Archdeacon  of  Westminster. 

June  I.  Leviticus — Deuteronomy.  On  the  Lord's 
Day.  On  the  Judicial  Functions  of  Metropolitans. 
(Colenso  Appeal.)  The  Morians'  Land.  (Cent. 
African  ^^lission.) 


CHRONOLOGICAL  TABLE. 


Oct.  16,  Joshua,  Judges,  Ruth. 

1866.  May  22.  Books  of  Samuel. 
Dec.  6.  Books  of  Kings. 

Letter  to  Times  on  Apocalyptic  frescoes  found  in 
West,  Chapter-house. 

1867.  Sermon  on  the  Lambeth  Conference. 
May  I.  Book  of  Job. 

Oct.  15.  The  Psalms. 

Nov.  28.  Epistola  encydica,  'Ettio-toXtj  avaTuriKi]. 
Gr.  Lat. 

1868.  April  28.  Proverbs  and  Song  of  Solomon. 
Oct.  2.  Isaiah. 

Sept.  20.   On  proposed  Council  at  Rome. 

Oct.  28.  Responsio  Anglicana. 

Nov.  14.  Nominated  Bishop  of  Lincoln. 

1869.  Feb.  24.  Consecration  in  Westminster  Abbey.    First 

Confirmation  Tour. 
July    28.    Jeremiah    and  Ezekiel.      Letters  on 
Dr.  Temple  and  See  of  Exeter. 

1870.  Feb.  I.  Daniel. 

Feb.  2.  Henry  Mackenzie,  Bp.  Suffragan  of  Not- 
tingham.    Visit  of  Bp.  Lycurgus. 

June  G.  Minor  Prophets. 

June  21.  D.C.L.  Oxon.,  honoris  causa.  The  Vatican 
Council. 

Aug.  5.  Association  for  Small  Benefices. 

Aug.  13.  Prayers  in  Time  of  War. 

Oct.  3 — 31.  Primary  Visitation  Charge. 

Nov.  10.  Three  Letters  on  PurcJias  ftidgment. 

1 87 1.  F'eb.  26.  Sermons  on  Maccabees  at  Cambridge. 
Pastoral  on  Ascension  Day. 

Sept.  20.  Diocesan  Synod. 

Oct.  10 — 13.  Nottingham  Church  Congress.  LJymn 
for  Unity. 

1872.  TYb.  8.  Speech  on  Athanasian  Creed.     Ethica. 
Sept.  8 — 22.  Present  at  Cologne  Congress. 
Oct.  25.  First  Diocesan  Conference. 

1873.  April    29.    Visitation   of    Cathedral.     Pastorals    to 

Weslcyans.     'Twelve  Diocesan  Addresses. 


CHRONOLOGICAL  TABLE. 


1874.  Jan.  6.  On  Confession  and  Absolution. 

Jan.  26.  On  Vacant  Benefice  of  Great  Coates. 

April.  Sale  of  Chnrch  Patronage. 

April  20.  Public  Worship  Regulation  Bill. 

May  4.  Plea  for  Toleration. 

June  4.  Speech.  ScIioIje  Cancellarii  Revived. 

June  20.   Senates  and  Synods. 

Sept.  21.   (9/^  New  Lectionary. 

1875.  Pastoral  to  Wesleyans.     Owston  Epitaph. 
Oct.  26.   Christian  Art  in  Cemetery  CJiapels. 

Nov.  23.  6>;^  Proposed  Mission.  On  Church  Tem- 
perance Society. 

1876.  Jan.  28.  Novate  Novak  founded. 
Lincoln  Mission  (February). 

Feb.  24.  Restoration  of  Bishop  Alnwick's  Tower. 

June  4.  Irenicum  Wesleyanum. 

July  27.  Foundation  of  New  County  Hospital. 

Sept.  28.   The  Mohammedan  Woe. 

Nov.  Diocesan  Addresses  (Third  Visitation). 

1877.  Jan.  6.    Theocritus. 

Jan.  10.  Letter  to  Canon  Hole  (Lord  Penzance). 

Oct.  5.  Diocesan  Conference  (The  Burials  Bill).  The 
Neivtonian  System  (at  Colsterworth).  The  Inter- 
mediate State. 

1878.  Jan.   25.    Dedication  of  S.  Paul's    IMission    House, 

Burgh. 
May  14.  Speech  on  Bishoprics  Bill. 
July  3.  Midland  Counties  Art  Museum,  Nottingham. 
July  2 — 27.  Lambeth  Conference. 
Epistola  centum  Episcoporum.     Oct.  i.  Consecration 

of  Lincoln  Hospital  Chapel. 
Oct.  15.  Bishop    Mackenzie    died.      Succeeded    by 

Dr.  Trollope. 
Nov.  20.  Eliz.  Frere  died. 

1879.  Letter  to   Univ.   Comm.  on  B.  N.  C.  and   Lincoln 

Coll.  Statutes. 
Miscellanies,  3  vols. 
October.  Ten  Addresses. 
On  Sisterhoods,  &c. 


CHRONOLOGICAL  TABLE. 


1880.  A.D.  1640 — 1660  (at  Southwell).      Reply  to  Clerical 

Address    on     Burials     Bill.       Special    Form    for 

Burial. 
July.  Royal  Archaeological  Institute  at  Lincoln. 
Sept.  22.  Diocesan  Conf.  on  Burial  Laws. 
Oct.  I.  Openings  of  Bishop's  Hostel. 

1 88 1.  Jan.  19.   On  Present  Disquietude  in  ChurcJi. 
■  Feb.  Chnvcli  History,  Vol.  L 

Petition  of  Visitor  of  Lincoln  College  to  the  Queen 

in  Council. 
June  I.  Speech  at  Foundation  of  Selwyn  College. 
Diocesan  Conference  on  Revised  Version  of  N.T. 
Nov.  Visits  of  Bps.  Reinkens  and  Herzog. 

1882.  Jan.   Church  History,  \o\.  II. 

May  21.    The  Future  of  our  Universities. 
June  14.    Where  zvas  Dodona  ? 
Derby  Church  Congress. 
Triennial  Addresses.     Fifth  Series. 

1883.  Jan.  3.   Church  History,  Vol.  III. 

July  II.  Southzvell.     Appeal  to  Clergy  and  Laity. 

Sept.  4.  Conjectural  Emendations. 

Nov.    5.    Speech   at    Lincoln    (S.P.G.)    on     Luther 

Commemoration. 
Dec.  15.  Speech  on  Mahommedanism. 
CJiurcJi  History,  Vol.  IV. 

1884.  Jan.  22.  Nottingham  Spiritual  Aid  Fund  founded. 
March  27.  "  Disabled  by  work  of  Confirmation." 
May  I.  Bp.  of  Southwell  consecrated. 

May  9.   CJiristian  VVoniaiihood,  &'c. 

July  7.  Letter  to  "Guardian."     2nd  Reading  D.  W. 

Sister's  Bill. 
Oct.  16.  John  Wiclif. 
Oct.  28.  Death  of  S.  II.  Wordsworth. 
Dec.  12.  Letter  ox\  proposed  resignation. 

1885.  Hoiv  to  Read  the  Old  Testament. 
Feb.  9.  Resigns  Diocese. 
March  20.  Bp.  King  elected. 
March  21.  Death  of  C.  Wordsworth. 
March  25.  Funeral  at  Lincoln. 


CHAPTER  I. 

PARENTAGE  AND  CHILDHOOD. 

Christopher  Wordsworth  was  born  at  Lambeth,  on 
October  30th,  1807,  3-^*^  was  the  third  son  of  Chris- 
topher Wordsworth,  afterwards  Master  of  Trinity 
College,  Cambridge,  and  of  his  wife  Priscilla,  daughter 
of  C.  Lloyd,  of  Bingley  Hall,  Birmingham,  The  family 
of  Wordsworth  had  been  settled  in  the  West  Ridinsf 
of  Yorkshire  since  about   1379  ;^   but  John  Words- 

^  An  old  oak  awniry,  dated  1525,  and  recording  the  names  of 
some  generations  of  the  family,  was  among  the  treasures  pre- 
served at  Rydal  Mount.  Bishop  Percy  has  handed  down  the 
name  of  Wordsworth  of  Penistone  as  first  cousin  to  Sir  E. 
Wortley  (the  "  Dragon  of  Wantley,"  of  church-devouring  fame). 
The  name  Wordswoiih  or  Wadstvorth  is  clearly  in  its  origin 
a  place-name— the  wori/i  or  manor  of  a  man  called  Word  ox  Ord 
(of.  Ordsal)  or  JVad.  It  is  found  as  a  family  name  with  a  great 
variety  of  spelling,  and  sometimes  with^  sometimes  without,  the 
de,  from  the  beginning  of  the  thirteenth  century  onwards,  in  the 
southern  part  of  the  West  Riding  of  Yorkshire,  and  chiefly  about 
the  course  of  the  rivers  Dove  and  Don.  Wadsworth,  which  is 
apparently  the  oldest  attested  form,  is  perhaps  also  the  original, 
and  has  been  preserved  in  the  second  name  of  Henry  Wads- 
worth  Longfellow,  the  illustrious  American  poet,  whose  mother's 
family  are  from  the  same  stock ;  but  the  English  branch  of 
the  poet's  family,  which  spelt  the  name  generally,  if  not  always, 
with  the  letter  r,  is  traceable  from  1379  onwards.  Their  happily 
characteristic  family  motto  Veritas  is  of  course  merely  a  play 
upon  the  meaning  of  the  name,  as  now  commonly  spelt,  and  has 
nothing  to  do  with  its  derivation. 


2  PARENTAGE  AND  CHILDHOOD.  [1807  — 

worth,  grandfather  of  the  subject  of  this  memoir, 
was  an  attorney  at  Cockermouth,  and  there  his  five 
children  were  born.  He  died  in  considerable  pecu- 
niary difficulties,  in  consequence  of  a  heavy  unpaid 
debt  which  the  then  Earl  of  Lonsdale,  whose  agent  he 
had  been,  had  incurred  to  the  family  ;-  but  his  two 
sons,  William  and  Christopher,  through  the  assistance 
of  their  uncles,  Richard  Wordsworth  and  Christopher 
Crackanthorpe,  were  educated  at  Cambridge.  The 
story  of  the  poet's  life  has  been  written  elsewhere  ; 
of  Christopher,  the  father  of  the  late  Bishop,  it  will 
be  sufficient  in  this  place  to  say  that  his  industry, 
uprightness,  and  ability  eventually  raised  him  to  the 
high  position  which  he  held  in  the  University.  "That 
same  industry,"  says  William  Wordsworth  in  an  early 
letter,  referring-  to  his  brother's  career,  "  is  a  good 
old  Roman  quality,  and  nothing  is  to  be  done  with- 
out it."  And  he  was  not  only  capable  of  earning 
academic  distinctions,  but,  what  is  perhaps  much 
rarer,  of  laying  them  down.  After  conscientiously 
discharging  the  duties  of  Master  of  Trinity  for  many 
years,  in  the  course  of  which  he  proved  himself  a 
most  generous  benefactor  to  the  college,  he  resigned 
that  post  in  favour  of  Dr.  Whewell,  for  whose 
appointment  he  stipulated  as  deeming  him  the 
fittest  and  worthiest  to  succeed  him. 

But  any  biography  of  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln  would 

2  This  debt  was  in  course  of  time  repaid  with  interest  by  the 
next  Earl ;  but,  as  may  be  seen  in  the  case  of  WiUiam  Words- 
worth and  his  sister  Dorothy,  not  before  causing  years  of  privation 
and  the  practice  of  the  severest  tlirift. 


-i82o.]  HEREDITARY  CHARACTERISTICS. 


be  very  inadequate  which  did  not  also  take  into  ac- 
count the  quahties  which  he  derived  from  his  mother 
and  her  family.  This  is  all  the  more  necessary  be- 
cause, owing  to  the  celebrity  of  William  Words- 
worth, the  characteristics  of  the  Bishop's  paternal 
ancestors  are  tolerably  well  known.  Intense  truth- 
fulness, exceptional  tenacity  of  purpose  and  power 
of  work,  a  certain  homeliness  and  simplicity  side  by 
side  with  the  strong  philosophic  and  poetical  instincts 
which  mark  the  northern  races,  an  independence  of 
character  which  at  times  was  capable  of  becoming 
aggressive  in  its  self-reliance,  and  habits  of  thrift 
(which  are  the  inevitable  result  of  a  protracted  struggle 
with  somewhat  stern  domestic  conditions),  were  the 
most  conspicuous  of  these  qualities.  He  of  whom 
this  memoir  is  written  was  endowed  with  many  of 
them  ;  but  others  which  he  had,  and  those,  perhaps, 
which  gave  a  special  charm  to  his  presence  and  a 
special  influence  to  his  life,  came  to  him  from  the 
mother's  side.  It  will  therefore  be  well  to  devote 
a  short  space  to  an  account  of  her. 

Priscilla  Lloyd  belonged  to  an  old  family  of  that 
name  which  was  directly  descended  from  King 
Edward  I.  and  Eleanor,  through  their  daughter 
Joanna,  and  which  had  possessed  estates  in  Wales 
for  many  generations.  Charles  Lloyd,  of  Dolobran, 
born  December  9th,  ]637,  adopted  (about  1662)  the 
opinions  of  the  celebrated  George  Fox,  and  suffered 
for  them,  his  possessions  being  put  under  praemunire 
in  consequence  of  his  refusal  to   take  the  oaths  of 

B   2 


4  PARENTAGE  AND  CHILDHOOD.  [1807— 

allegiance  and  supremacy  in  the  reign  of  Charles  II. 
He  suffered  ten  years'  imprisonment  in  Welsh- 
pool goal  and  much  loss  of  property. 

Owing  to  their  having  joined  the  Society  of 
Friends  the  Lloyds  underwent  the  usual  disqualifi- 
cations of  Nonconformists  in  those  days,  and,  like 
many  others  similarly  circumstanced,  took  to  the 
business  of  banking  as  an  occupation  in  which  those 
disqualifications  were  likely  to  be  least  felt.  In  1 748 
was  born  Charles  Lloyd,  grandfather  of  the  Bishop 
of  Lincoln,  whose  marriage  with  Mary  Farmer,  of 
Bingley  Hall,  was  followed  by  the  birth  of  a  large 
family  of  sons  and  daughters.  Of  these,  Priscilla 
was  the  eldest  girl.  The  site  of  Bingley  Hall  is 
now  in  the  heart  of  Birmingham  ;  but  in  those  days 
it  was  a  handsome  family  mansion  surrounded  with 
trees,  with  a  master  who  was  not  only  a  shrewd  man 
of  business,  but  an  able  preacher  in  the  Society,^ 
and  so  ardent  a  lover  of  Homer  and  Horace  that 
he  wrote  and  published  poetical  translations  of  large 
portions  of  the  works  of  both.  Some  of  the  sons 
were  men  of  brilliant  abilities  ;  the  eldest,  Charles, 
is  well  known  as  the  friend  and  literary  colleague 
of  Charles  Lamb.  The  daughters  were  possessed 
of  considerable  personal  attractions.  The  portrait 
of  Priscilla  Lloyd  represents  a  young  woman  simply 
dressed  in  white,  with  clear-cut  features,  bright  com- 
plexion, fine  dark-brown  eyes,  and  the  dark  eye- 
brows so  characteristic  of  her  youngest  son. 
3  Some  of  his  MS.  sermons  are  still  preserved. 


—  i82o.]  THE  LLOYD  FAMILY.  5 

With  the  orderly  habits  of  a  man  of  business,  the 
Bishop's  grandfather  has  preserved  his  correspon- 
dence with  his  daughters  from  the  year  1 790  on- 
wards. An  extract  from  one  of  these  letters  will  give 
some  idea  of  the  *'  interior  "  of  Quaker  life  in  those 
days : — 

London,  16,  2  mo.,  I790. 

Dear  Priscilla, — I  was  very  glad  to  receive  thy 
pretty  letter,  and  to  read  thy  account  of  what  is  going 
forward  at  home.  I  hope  thy  cold  will  soon  be  better 
and  that  thou  wilt  behave  so  well  at  Bingley  as  to  induce 
grandma  to  wish  for  thy  company  again.  I  dined  on 
first  day  at  Coz.  Barclay's,  and  saw  all  their  ten  good 
children,  they  write  very  prettily  and  don't  blot  their 
books,  they  put  one  word  regularly  under  the  other,  so 
that  all  their  lines  appear  of  the  same  length,  which  makes 
their  books  look  very  neat.  They  were  much  pleased 
with  James's  picture  of  the  Vicar  and  Moses.  They  have 
lately  begun  to  draw  themselves,  and  make  a  proficiency, 
but  I  hope  my  children  will  exert  themselves,  and  not  let 
anybody  get  before  them.  ...  I  hope  Brothers  are  good 
boys,  and  attend  to  the  advice  of  their  mamma  and 
master,  and  that  they  are  kind  to  their  sisters.  Agatha 
Barclay  rides  very  well,  and  I  hope  Priscy  will  soon  learn 
to  ride,  for  it  is  very  ornamental  and  useful  for  a  woman 
to  be  skilful  in  riding.  .  .  .  Give  my  love  to  uncle  Nehe- 
miah,  and  if  he  invites  thee  to  drink  tea,  be  sure  and  use 
no  more  sugar  when  his  eyes  are  shut  than  when  they  are 
open.  I  love  you  all  dearly,  I  hope  you  will  all  be  good 
and  love  one  another. 

I  am  my  dear  Priscilla's  very  affectionate  father, 

Charles  Lloyd. 

From  her  letters  at  about  the  age  of  sixteen,  it 
is  obvious  that   Priscilla  Lloyd  was  already  begin- 


6  PARENTAGE  AND  CHILDHOOD.  [1807  — 

ning  to  feel  the  limits  of  the  ''  Society  ''  somewhat 
oppressive,  and  to  long  for  a  more  unconfined  atmo- 
sphere. Her  brother  Charles  had  been  to  Cambridge 
and  had  made  a  college  friendship  with  Christopher 
Wordsworth,  who,  having  like  his  three  brothers, 
Richard,  William,  and  John,  been  at  school  at 
Hawkshead,  was  now  working  hard  at  Trinity. 
This  introduction  to  a  circle  which  included  William 
Wordsworth,  Samuel  Taylor-  Coleridge,  and  Charles 
Lamb,*  and  his  friend  Manning,  not  only  gave  a 
great  stimulus  to  the  literary  tastes  of  Charles,  but 
produced  a  lasting  effect  on  the  fortunes  of  his  sister, 
to  whom  Christopher  Wordsworth  soon  formed  a 
deep  attachment.  A  passage  in  a  letter  from  him 
to  his  life-long  friend,  Jonathan  Walton,  will  give  an 
idea  of  the  situation  of  the  two  young  lovers  : — • 

BirmingJiam,  Jan.  2>0th,  1799. 
Nor    is  it    with   Lloyd  only  that   I  have  to    dread  a 
parting.     I  have    to    leave   a  future  wife  behind  me.     I 
will  not  now  tell  you  the  history  of  our  love,  but  to  his 

•'  Wc  insert  a  passage  from  C.  Lamb  to  Manning  in  the  spring 
of  iSoo,  March  17th.  "  My  dear  love  to  Lloyd  and  Sophia.  .  . 
They  are  my  oldest  friends.  Tell  Charles  I  have  seen  his 
mamma,  and  have  almost  fallen  in  love  with  /icr,  since  I  mayn't 
with  Olivia.  She  is  so  fine  and  graceful,  a  complete  matron-lady- 
quaker.  She  has  given  me  two  little  books.  Olivia  grows  a 
charming  girl — full  of  feeling,  and  thinner  than  she  was ;  but 
I  have  not  time  to  fall  in  love."  And  in  his  next  letter  to 
Manning  :  "  Robert  Lloyd  is  come  to  town.  Priscilla  meditates 
going  to  see  Pizarro  at  Drury  Lane  to-night  (from  her  uncle's), 
under  cover  of  coming  to  dine  with  me — heu  !  tempera  !  heu  ! 
mores  ! — I  have  barely  time  to  finish,  as  I  expect  her  and  Robin 
every  minute." 


—  t82o.]  his  FATHER'S  marriage.  7 

eldest  sister  I  have  opened  my  heart,  and  she  is  to  be 
mine  for  ever.  You  know  that  her  father  is  a  Quaker. 
To  look,  therefore,  for  his  consent,  would  be  idle.  I  am 
to  exert  myself  to  get  some  small  thing  as  soon  as  possible; 
a  very  little  will  content  us,  and  for  the  rest  we  must  trust 
to  the  future.  .  .  .  My  Priscilla  is  now  a  little  more  than 
seventeen,  not  under  the  middle  size  of  women,  not  slender, 
not  handsome,  but  what  at  times  you  would,  I  think,  call 
a  fine  woman.  Charles  told  her  one  day  that  she  was 
something  like  Mrs.  Siddons.  .  .  .  Her  understanding  is 
exceedingly  good.  Quakers,  you  know,  do  not  admit  of 
fashionable  accomplishments,  and  therefore,  except  draw- 
ing, she  has  none  of  them.  .  .  .  All  her  feelings  are  deep, 
severe,  and  profound. 

On  October  6th,  1804,  at  S.  Martin's,  Bir- 
mingham, Christopher  Wordsworth  v^as  united  to 
Priscilla  Lloyd.  The  bride  had  been  baptized  on 
the  same  day,  her  tv^^enty-third  birthday.  The 
bridegroom  was  at  this  time  thirty  years  of  age,  and 
had  lately  been  appointed  to  the  livings  of  Ashby 
and  Oby-cum-Thyrne,  in  the  diocese  of  Norwich, 
by  Bishop  Manners  Sutton,  afterwards  Archbishop 
of  Canterbury,  who  had  made  him  his  chaplain  in 
1802,  and  whose  son  (afterwards  Speaker  of  the 
House  of  Commons,  and  Viscount  Canterbury)  had 
been  his  pupil  at  Cambridge.  On  the  ist  of  July, 
1805,  their  eldest  son  John  was  born;  on  August 
22nd,  1806,  their  second  son  Charles,  and  on 
October  30th,  1807,  their  third  son  Christopher. 

The  letters  of  Mrs.  Wordsworth  really  give  the 
best  account  that  could  be  given  of  the  earliest 
years  of  Christopher  Wordsworth.     There  is  some- 


8  PARENTAGE  AND  CHILDHOOD.  [i Scy- 

thing very  touching  in  the  artless  details  which  the 
young  mother  poured  forth  from  the  fulness  of  her 
heart,  of  the  baby-life  of  those  three  brilliant  sons 
who  afterwards  almost  swept  the  Universities  of 
their  highest  distinctions.  It  will  not  therefore,  we 
trust,  be  considered  beneath  the  dignity  of  our  sub- 
ject if  we  make  one  or  two  extracts  from  these 
simple  letters,  which  derive  an  additional  pathos 
from  the  fact  that  the  mother  was  so  soon  to  be 
parted  from  her  boys. 

In  a  letter  written  in  the  autumn  of  1805,  from 
Lambeth,  where  the  family  had  to  reside  in  order  to 
be  in  attendance  on  the  new  Archbishop  (Manners 
Sutton),  Mrs.  Wordsworth  writes  : — 

Next  week  we  propose  to  have  our  dear  little  John 
christened.  We  have  deferred  it  till  our  brother  Richard's 
return,  as  he  stands  sponsor.  My  sister  Dorothy  has 
offered  herself  as  godmother.  Friday  is  the  day  fixed,  if 
it  can  be  accomplished,  being  a  prayer-day,  as  Wordsworth 
wishes  to  have  the  ceremony  performed  in  the  church." 

Baptisms  in  those  days  were  not  unfrequently  per- 
formed in  private  houses. 

To  her  sister  Olivia  (iSo8)  : — 

I  have  great  comfort  in  my  little  Christopher,  who 
thrives  finely.  I  seem  to  love  every  infant  more  than  the 
former.  A  young  infant  is  one  of  the  chicfcst  delights  of 
married  life, — nothing  can,  I  think,  surpass  the  endearment 
and  tenderness  they  inspire: ;  though  such  are  my  feelings, 
{q\\^  I  fancy,  would  sympathize  with  them  at  sight  of  my 
little  Christopher.  Wordsworth  says  he  is  remarkably 
plain — and  1  cannot  discover  any  beauty  of  feature  or 
complexion. 


-i82o.]    EXTRACTS  FROM  HIS  MOTHERS  LETTERS.    9 


In  May,  1808,  Dr.  Wordsworth  was  offered  the 
valuable  living  and  Deanery  of  Booking,  in  Essex. 
He  had  resigned  Ashby  in  1806.  His  wife  writes 
to  her  father  : — 

February  lyth,  1809. 

As  to  poor  Christy,  his  attractions  are  but  small,  for  he 
wants  most  of  the  graces  of  mind  and  body.  He  is  quite 
an  oddity,  but  I  find  enough  to  love  in  him.  He  is  a  great 
darling  with  his  parents. 

To  THE  Same. 

June  \A,tli,  1812. 
My  dear  boys  have  just  been  reading  to  me,  and  are 
now  gone  to  bed.  Little  Christy  (4^)  discovers  a  great 
fondness  for  learning.  Yesterday  I  could  not  get  him 
from  his  book  all  day,  indeed  he  keeps  quite  separate 
from  his  brothers,  and  never  would  leave  my  side  if  he  can 
be  with  me. 

The  following  letter  to  her  mother  has  an  interest 
of  its  own,  as  showing  her  power  of  estimating 
character.  It  was  evidently  written  from  Bocking, 
while  her  husband  was  in  attendance  at  Lambeth  : — 

June  'list,  1 81 2. 
Together  with  thy  letter,  the  post  brought  an  affecting 
one  from  W.  Wordsworth  to  his  brother,  containing  a  very 
poor  account  of  his  wife,  who  has  been  completely  overset 
by  the  sad  loss  of  her  dear  little  girl  [see  the  dedication  to 
the  "  White  Doe  of  Ryistone  "],  and  her  health  is  so  much 
affected  that  at  present  she  is  not  able  to  travel.  I  was 
much  struck  with  the  dignified,  yet  acute  sensibility  with 
which  he  sustained  the  shock,  but  there  is  a  constitutional 
philosophy  in  the  whole  family  which  is,  I  think,  rarely  to 
be  met  with.  Their  view  of  life  is  so  dispassionate  and 
just,  that  whatever  happens,  they  are  not  overthrown,  or 
cast  down    with  dismay.  .  .  .  My  dear  little   Christy  is 


PARENTAGE  AND  CHILDHOOD.  [1807— 


just  putting  in  his  little  intelligent  face,  to  beg  his  hymn- 
book,  a  present  from  his  god-papa,  Mr.  Walton.  He  reads 
very  nicely  and  promises  fair  to  be  a  scholar,  as  books  are 
at  present  his  great  delight.  He  is  only  four  years  old, 
and  yet  reads  and  understands  books  which  appear  to  me 
considerably  beyond  his  years.  We  have  the  music  of  the 
groves  here  in  great  perfection.  I  long  for  some  one  to 
share  in  the  fresh  beauties  that  are  blooming  around  me, 
for  if  they  cannot  inspire  gladness,  at  least  they  nil  the 
heart  with  peace  and  thankfulness. 

To  HER  Father. 

Bocking,  Oct.  1st,  181 2. 

The  dear  boys  are  at  school  all  day  [at  Braintree]  ;  but  of 
an  evening  we  have  nice  readings  together.  They  have  taken 
a  wonderful  fancy  to  the  Book  of  Judith  in  the  Apocrypha. 
It  is  very  entertaining  to  hear  their  various  comments. 
Christy's  eyes  glisten  with  interest.  "  Me  do  think  she  is 
a  cunning  woman,"  he  exclaimed  with  great  animation. 
Charley  was  very  grave,  and  was  concerned  that  the 
Israelites  did  not  place  more  trust  in  God,  and  pray  to 
Him  for  deliverance.  John  takes  upon  him  to  explain  all 
difficulties,  by  quotations  from  Scripture,  and  enlarged 
upon  God's  frequent  trial  of  the  faith  of  those  He  intended 
to  deliver,  by  bringing  them  into  great  straits  and  diffi- 
culties. 

Christy  has  quite  a  warlike  spirit — nothing  he  delights 
in  so  much  as  Chevy  Chase,  or  anything  about  war  and 
fighting.  It  is  curious  to  observe  the  very  different  tastes 
of  children  as  their  minds  open, — and  very  interesting  to 
listen  to  their  different  views  of  the  same  subject. 

It  is  still  more  interesting-  to  read  the  above  extract 
half  a  century  afterwards,  especially  to  those  who 
remember  the  little  eager  "  Christy  "  as  a  scarcely 
less  eager  old  man  talking  with  keen  interest  over 


— 1820.]  EXTRACTS  FROM  HIS  MOTHERS  LETTERS,  ii 

the  Book  of  Judith,  and  discussing  the  probablHty  of 
Its  being  an  historical  romance,  "something  hke  the 
Grand  Cyrus,''  at  a  period  when  the  captive  Jews 
were  careful  to  write  so  as  to  avoid  giving  offence 
to  their  conquerors  or  political  opponents.  The 
"warlike  spirit,"  too,  never  deserted  him,  though  It 
took  a  very  different  direction  from  what  might  in 
those  old  days  have  been  anticipated. 

In  1 8 14,  Dr.  Wordsworth  was  offered  the  Bishopric 
of  Calcutta,  after  Bishop  MIddleton's  death,  but 
declined  It.  Shortly  after  this  Dr.  Wordsworth  was 
called  upon  to  preach  the  consecration  sermon  of  the 
Hon.  H.  Ryder,  Bishop  of  Gloucester.  His  wife 
writes  to  her  father  : — 

Bockmg,  Aug.  yth,  181 5. 

Wordsworth  got  through  his  day  at  Lambeth  I  imagine 
with  great  credit,  though  I  never  can  get  from  him  any 
account  of  himself,  or  the  commendation  he  receives. 
"  Decently,"  or  "  tolerably,"  are  generally  the  highest 
epithets  he  bestows  on  his  own  doings,  so  that  if  I  get  such 
expressions  as  these  I  interpret  them  accordingly.  He  is 
now  engaged  on  two  more  public  occasions  in  London — 
one  for  the  London  National  Schools,  and  the  other  for 
Hackney,  so  that  there  is  no  danger  of  his  talents  rusting 
for  want  of  exercise. 

My  dear  boys  Charles  and  Christy  are  very  good,  and 
great  comforts  to  me.  I  often  miss  dear  John  exceedingly, 
[He  had  just  gone  to  school  at  Woodford.]  He  was  a 
boy  always  to  keep  alive  one's  hopes  and  fears.  I  believe 
few  grown  people  have  reflected  more,  or  more  deeply. 
His  conversations  in  this  way  iiave  been  often  surprising. 
As  a  scholar  Christy  will,  I  think,  soon  surpass  him,  and 
in  quickness  of  reasoning,  but   in  depth  of  character  and 


12  PARENTAGE  AND  CHILDHOOD.  [1807- 


penetration  I  never  yet  saw  a  child  resembling  John — so 
that  whilst  I  have  admired  his  talents  it  has  always  been 
with  trembling'. 

One  more  letter  from  Mrs.  Wordsworth,  to 
"Christy,"  on  a  visit  to  his  godfather,  Mr.  Walton, 
at  Birdbrook,  may  be  inserted.  It  is  not  dated,  but 
evidently  belongs  to  this  period. 

Wednesday  evening. 
My  dearest  Christy, — Yesterday  evening  John, 
Charles,  and  myself  tried  for  some  time  to  send  you  a 
letter  in  rhyme,  but  we  were  at  length  forced  to  give  it  up, 
we  got  on  so  slowly.  I  often  think  of  you,  my  dear  boy, 
and  feel  great  comfort  in  knowing  that  you  are  among 
such  very  kind  friends.  I  hope  you  are  a  very  good  boy, 
and  give  as  little  trouble  as  possible,  but  mind  everything 
that  you  are  bid,  and  that  you  are  careful  to  learn  your 
lessons  perfectly,  so  as  not  to  have  them  to  say  twice 
over. 

x'\fter  telling  hov\^  the  mare  has  been  stolen,  and 
the  gipsies  suspected,  she  goes  on  : — 

Papa  is  quite  well ;  we  often  talk  of  dear  Christy,  and 
mamma  longs  very  often  to  see  her  little  companion.  .  .  . 
I  wish  you  would  write  me  a  nice  letter.  Wc  should  all 
be  glad  to  hear  from  you.  I  think,  perhaps,  papa  will 
have  something  to  say  to  your  godpapa,  so  I  must  leave 
him  a  little  room,  and  bid  my  dear  little  boy  a  very  kind 
farewell.  He  is  now,  I  imagine,  fast  asleep.  ...  I  very 
often  think  of  what  you  are  doing  in  the  course  of  the  day, 
and  it's  always  a  pleasure  to  mc  to  think  of  my  dear  little 
boy. 

These  tender  words  seem  like  her  final  farewell  to 
the  *'  dear  little  boy  "  who  was  so  soon  to  be  deprived 


-i820.]  DEATH  OF  HIS  MOTHER. 


of  her  affectionate  care.  She  died  in  her  confinement, 
at  the  early  age  of  thirty-four,  October  7th,  18 15, 
about  three  weeks  before  his  eighth  birthday.  He 
too  is  "  now  asleep,"  but  who  can  doubt  that  if  the 
mother's  love  and  mothers  prayers  that  hovered  over 
tbe  bed  of  the  slumbering  child  were  blessed  beyond 
all  her  expectation  in  this  life,  mother  and  son  may 
even  now  be  entering  together  on  an  intercourse, 
whose  happiness  it  is  not  permitted  to  us  as  yet  to 
conceive  ? 

Her  son  Charles,  now  the  Bishop  of  S.  Andrew's, 
writes : — 

As  a  proof  of  the  esteem  and  affection  in  which  she  was 
held  for  her  good  works,  it  may  be  mentioned  that  when 
I  visited  Booking,  more  than  forty  years  after  her  death, 
and  went  to  see  the  churchyard  where  she  was  buried,  I 
found  her  grave  strewed  with  fresh  flowers,  which  I  was 
told  had  been  continually  done  during  all  these  years  by 
some  poor  person  or  persons  who  cherished  her  memory. 

This  loss  no  doubt  made  Dr.  Wordsworth  willing 
to  exchange  Bocking  for  a  more  laborious  charge, 
and  in  1816  he  was  appointed  by  the  Archbishop  to 
the  Rectories  of  Sundridge  and  Lambeth,  where  he 
appears  to  have  injured  his  health  by  his  conscien- 
tious work  in  the  latter  parish,  which  was  then  much 
larger  and  more  unwieldy  than  it  is  now,  he  him- 
self during  his  four  years'  tenure  of  the  living,  having 
caused  the  formation  of  five  new  districts,  and  set 
on  foot  the  erection  of  five  new  churches. 

In   June,    1820,    the  same    kind    patron  was  the 


14  PARENTAGE  AND  CHILDHOOD.  [1820. 

medium  of  offering  him,  on  the  part  of  Lord  Liver- 
pool, the  post  with  which  his  name  is  generally 
associated — the  Mastership  of  Trinity  College,  Cam- 
bridge. He  was  staying  at  the  time  v/ith  his  friend 
Mrs.  Hoare,  at  Hampstead,  and  she  and  his  other 
constant  friend,  Joshua  Watson,  saw  that  the  place 
was  one  which  he  was  well  fitted  to  fill,  as  he  did  for 
twenty-one  years. 


CHAPTER  II. 

SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE. 

In  the  autumn  of  1820,  just  after  their  father's 
appointment  to  Trinity  College,  John  and  Christopher 
Wordsworth  entered  Winchester  College  as  Com- 
moners in  the  house  of  Dr.  Gabell.  Christopher 
who  was  nearly  thirteen  years  of  age,  was  placed  at 
the  bottom  of  what  is  there  called  Junior  Part  of 
Fifth  Book.  This  was  two  years  after  the  so-called 
*'  Second  Rebellion,"  for  which  many  of  the  most 
distinguished  boys  had  been  expelled,  including  such 
men  as  Lord  Hatherley  and  Sir  Alexander  Malet, 
The  boys  in  the  upper  forms  were,  on  this  account, 
probably  ratheryounger  than  usual,  but  they  numbered 
among  their  ranks  such  well-known  names  as  those 
of  William  Sewell  (said  to  have  been  the  only  boy 
in  "Commoners  "  who  refused  to  join  the  rebellion), 
George  Moberly  (afterwards  head-master  and  Bishop 
of  Salisbury),  Edmund  Walker  Head  (Governor  of 
Canada),  John  Jebb  (Canon  of  Hereford),  Henry 
Miers  Elliot  (of  Indian  celebrity),  and  James  Clay 
(for  many  years  M. P.  for  Hull).  Among  other  con- 
temporaries may  be  mentioned  Stephen  and  Bin  • 
steed  Gazelee,   John  Floyer,  long  M.P.  for  Dorset, 


i6  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [1820- 


James  Parker  Deane,  O.C.,  James  Edwardes  Sewell, 
Warden  of  New  College,  John  Eardley  Wilmot, 
Nathaniel  Merriman,  Bishop  of  Grahamstown,  John 
Griffith,  Warden  of  Wadham  College,  Charles 
Raikes,  C.S.I.,  and  Reginald  Smith,  of  West  Stafford, 
Dorset,  to  whose  kindness  we  owe  some  remi- 
niscences which  will  be  quoted  below.  Among 
Christopher  Wordsworth's  most  frequent  corre- 
spondents were  James  Fisher  and  Charles  Seagram, 
of  Brasenose  College,  and  Henry  Davison,  of  Trinity 
College,  Oxford,  afterwards  Chief  Justice  of  Madras. 
But  the  letters  mention  the  names  of  many  others 
as  taking  an  affectionate  interest  in  his  school  suc- 
cesses and  other  doings,  showing  that  he  had  a  wide 
circle  of  friends. 

For  two  years  the  school  continued  to  be  governed 
by  Dr.  Henry  Dixon  Gabell,  who  after  having  been 
second-master  for  sixteen  years  had  become  head- 
master in  1809,  and  was  therefore  the  depositary  of 
many  school  traditions. 

He  was  a  strict  disciplinarian,  and  excessively 
severe  upon  small  faults.  "It  was  considered  an 
unpardonable  offence  (equal  in  enormity  to  a  false 
concord  or  a  false  quantity)  if  a  boy  wrote  'Oh  !'  before 
a  noun  in  the  vocative  instead  of '  O  ! '  "  This  riofour 
characterized  the  whole  system  of  Winchester  under 
Gabell.  But  in  boys  who  had  any  bent  for  learning, 
as  for  instance  in  the  case  of  John  Wordsworth,  and, 
in  a  different  way,  Dr.  Griffiths  of  Wadham,  as  well 
as  in  the  subject  of  this   memoir  and   many  another 


—  1S30.]      WINCHESTER   UNDER  DR.    G  A  BELL.  17 


Wykehamist  besides — it  produced  a  most  valuable 
habit  of  accuracy.  Boys  learnt  under  such  a  master 
to  "speak  out,"  to  construe  fluently  and  correctly, 
and  to  translate  Greek  into  Latin  without  a  blunder. 
There  was  little  training  except  in  classics  and 
divinity,  and  this  was  somewhat  of  a  disadvantage  to 
one  who  had  no  mother  or  sister  to  enlarge  his  sphere 
of  interests.  But  he  was  too  great  a  lover  of  books 
and  of  literature  of  all  kinds  to  suffer  so  much  by 
it  as  some  perhaps  did.  The  school  was  in  other 
respects  rough,  overcrowded,  and  dangerous  to  boys 
of  weakly  constitution,  either  physically,  mentally,  or 
morally. 

How  we  survived  it  (he  writes)  I  hardly  know.  Bishop 
Merriman,  of  Grahamstown,  the  other  day  reminded  me 
of  the  Homeric  description  of  Ithaca  which  Gabell  applied 
to  Commoners — 

Tprj-^el ,  aXV  dya6r)  fcovpoTp6(f)o<;. 

And  our  Ithaca  certainly  was  Tp7^T^eta.  .  .  .  However  we  did 
survive  it.  And  I  must  say  that  though  we  feared  Gabell, 
we  loved  him  too.  Whenever  he  preached  to  us  (it  was 
very  seldom),  especially  before  Confirmation,  the  effect  was 
wonderful.  He  taught  us  to  regard  the  Greek  Testament 
as  the  "  best  of  books,"  and  used  to  give  it  as  a  "  leaving 
book  "  to  pupils  who  had  done  their  duty.  ...  I  remember 
when  Gabell  left  Winchester  for  the  living  of  Binfield 
[Dec.  1823],  given  him  by  Lord  Chancellor  Eldon  (whose 
grandson,  John  Scott,  was  under  him),  we  were  all  deeply 
affected.  A  memorial  was  presented  to  him  in  Com- 
moners' Hall  at  a  farewell  suppc--,  in  the  shape  of  a  service 
of  plate,  which  bore  a  Latin  inscription  from  the  pen  of 
his  successor.  Dr.  Williams,  then  under-master  or  Ostiarius, 

c 


i8  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [i8co— 

and  he  made  us  an  allocution  in  his  grand  yet  fatherly 
manner^  by  which  we  were  all  deeply  touched,  and  I  re- 
member feeling  constrained  to  write  off  an  account '  of  it 
to  some  London  paper  (I  think  it  was  the  Observer)^  in 
which  the  last  sentence  was  that  we  were  all  ready  to 
die  for  him  ! 

Gabell  was  succeeded  by  [Dr.  David]  Williams  [after- 
wards Warden  of  New  College,  Oxford].  It  was  like 
Melanchthon  coming  after  Luther,  which  some  have  com- 
pared to  Lite  in  Homer  coming  after  Ate.  I  will  only 
say  that,  if  Gabell's  reign  was  a  reign  of  fear,  that  of 
Williams  was  one  of  love.  I  think  that  we  should  have 
been  pleased  with  a  little  more  strictness  ;  boys  like  being 
kept  in  order,  and  they  do  not  fully  appreciate  mildness 
and  gentleness.  But  we  all  felt  that  Williams  was  a  Christian 
gentleman,  that  he  was  thoroughly  honest,  upright,  and 
just ;  and  we  knew  him  to  be  a  first-rate  scholar,  not 
perhaps  thoroughly  versed  in  the  minutiae  of  the  classical 
philology  of  Bentley  and  Porson,  but  in  carefulness  of 
observation,  in  retentiveness  of  memory,  and  in  exquisite 
refinement  and  delicacy  of  taste,  surpassed  by  none. 

The  very  discomfort  of"  Commoners'  study"  drove 
boys  in  those  days  much  into  the  open  air,  and  the 
Bishop  used  to  describe  the  great  enjoyment  he  had 
as  a  boy  in  learning  the  Georglcs  by  heart  (and  he 
never  forgot  them)  in  the  beautiful  meadows,  watered 
by  clear  streams,  close  by  which  the  school  lies.  His 
taste  for  Theocritus,  of  which  he  was  in  due  time 

^  Such  an  account  is  still  preserved  in  one  of  the  Bishop's  note- 
books. Dr.  (Cabell's  speech  began  :  "  Generous  and  dear  boys, 
this  exi)ression  of  your  feelings  fills  me  with  delight.  During 
thirty  years  I  have  undergone  ihe  toils  and  anxieties  incidental 
to  my  office  in  this  college.;  but  for  those  toils  and  anxieties 
I  now  receive  ample  amends  and  recompense,"  &c. 


—1830.]    WINCHESTER   UNDER  DR.    WILLIAMS.  19 

to  be  editor,  was  stimulated  by  an  unexpected  gift 
of  Kiessling's  edition  from  the  head-master,  as  a 
reward  for  a  successful  "Easter-task"  on  ancient 
Italian  horticulture  ("  Horticultura  apud  Italos"). 

The  religious  education  of  the  school  was  more  in 
the  system  than  in  the  individual.  Dr.  Williams 
when  he  began  to  give  a  sermon  in  school,  showed 
his  modest  distrust  of  his  own  powers  by  reading 
the  sermons  of  Dr.  Sumner,  then  a  Fellow  of  Eton, 
and  afterwards  Archbishop  of  Canterbury.  He  was 
regular  in  morning  chapel,  and  was  known  to  wish  his 
boys  to  do  right.  He  encouraged  their  games,  and 
continued,  when  they  had  left,  to  take  an  affectionate 
interest  in  them.  But  he  seems  to  have  shrunk  from 
touching  vice  with  a  firm  hand,  and  from  coming  to 
close  quarters  with  his  pupils  on  delicate  moral 
questions.  What  impressed  the  better  boys  in  those 
days  was  the  regularity  of  certain  observances,  the 
daily  prayers,  the  surplice  chapel,  the  observance 
of  the  Church's  year,  the  commemorations  of  the 
founder,  the  traditions  and  associations  of  the  school 
with  the  lives  of  good  men  such  as  Bishops  Ken  and 
Lowth,  and  the  loyalty  to  school  and  Church,  which 
was,  and  happily  still  is,  traditional  at  Winchester. 
At  Easter-time  special  books  were  read  and  construed 
in  school,  such  as  Bishop  Lowth's  Lectures  '  De 
sacra  poesi  Hebraeorum,"  Burnet's  "  De  fide,"  and 
Grotius'  "  De  Veritate  Christianae  religionis." 

There  was  one  exercise  (he  writes)  which  I  remember 
with   special   gratification.     We  had    each   two   copies    of 

C    2 


20  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [1820— 

Dr.  White's  "  Diatessaron"  (i.e.  the  Gospel  History  com- 
posed from  the  four  Evangelists),  one  copy  in  English  and 
another  in  Greek,  and  we  were  required  to  come  up  to  the 
master  with  the  English  alone  in  our  hands,  and  to  read 
it  off  into  Greek.  And  then  we  had  our  "  Easter-tasks," 
and  at  that  season  we  had  to  write  verses  on  religious 
subjects.  I  have  notes  of  several  subjects  of  this  kind  on 
which  I  had  to  write,  such  as  Belshazzar's  Feast  ;  the 
cessation  of  the  Oracles  at  the  coming  of  Christ  ;  the  Fall 
of  Man  ;  the  combat  of  David  with  Goliath  ;  the  Crucifixion 
of  Christ  ;  His  Resurrection  ;  "Omnia  Deo  plena  sunt;" 
the  Martyrdom  of  Archbishop  Cranmer ;  the  raising  of 
Lazarus. 

Wordsworth's  Easter-task  on  the  last  subject  had, 
as  we  shall  see  later  on  in  this  chapter,  a  considerable 
fame  amongst  his  contemporaries,  and  lines  from  it 
were  quoted  long  after  to  him.  to  his  surprise,  "  by 
one  of  the  Withers." 

These  details  will,  we  believe,  not  only  be  interesting 
to  old  Wykehamists  who  may  read  this  memoir,  but 
will  be  seen  to  have  a  distinct  bearing  on  the  after 
iife  of  the  Bishop,  as  a  theologian  and  commentator, 
no  less  than  as  a  scholar  and  an  educator  himself,  who 
realized  the  defects  as  well  as  the  great  possibilities 
and  advantages  of  the  public  school  system  under 
which  he  was  trained.  Those  who  passed  through 
this  Spartan  discipline  unharmed  came  out  strong 
men.  A  short  extract  from  a  letter  of  Canon 
Reginald  Smith  will  complete  the  picture.  After 
speaking  of  the  high  reputation  for  scholarship 
which  Winchester  enjoyed,  and  adding  some  painful 
details  of  the  morals  and  discipline  prevalent  in  the 


—  1830.]  WORDSWORTH  AS  A  PREFECT.  21 

school,  and  the  extreme  privations  and  discomforts 
to  which  the  boys  were  subject,  he  says  : — 

Christopher  Wordsworth  was  one  of  the  Prefects  in 
Commoners  when  I  entered  as  a  junior  boy,  in  the 
year  1823,  .  .  .  and  I  have  a  feehng  recollection  of  the 
strength  of  his  arm  in  chastising  my  idleness  and  love 
of  mischief  by  a  well-deser\'ed  cut  across  my  back  with 
his  cane  [or  rather  "ground-ash"].  It  was  part  of  the 
duty  of  the  prefects  to  walk  up  and  down  the  Hall 
with  a  long  cane,  for  the  purpose  of  preserving  order. 
I  have  a  fresh  recollection  of  the  aw^e  with  which  we 
juniors  looked  up  to  the  prefects.  Wordsworth  was  not 
one  of  those  who  abused  his  authority  by  violence  or 
ill-temper,  and  as  a  prefect  was  generally  liked  and 
respected.  As  soon  as  we  juniors  began  to  emerge  from 
the  drudge  'into  the  scholar,  we  listened  with  admiration 
to  his  sonorous  voice,  while  he  recited  his  superior  compo- 
sitions. At  Easter-tide  the  upper  boys  were  allowed  to 
select  their  own  subject  for  a  Latin  poem,  and  if  it  was 
above  the  usual  order  of  merit,  they  had  the  honour  of 
reciting  it  before  the  assembled  school.  Wordsworth  chose 
for  his  subject  in  the  year  1824  (at  the  age  of  i6\)  the 
Resurrection  of  Lazarus.  Probably  he  was  led  to  the 
above  by  the  very  fine  painting,  by  Benjamin  West,  over 
the  communion-table  in  Winchester  Cathedral.  [But  the 
Bishop  of  S.  Andrew's  informs  us  that  he  suggested  to  his 
brother  this  subject,  which  had  been  set  for  a  prize  at 
Harrow  the  year  before]  The  youthful  poet  has  vividly 
expressed  in  classical  Latin  some  of  the  ideas  which 
seem  to  have  been  in  the  mind  of  the  painter  :  for 
instance,  the  line  "  Et  vacuas  palpans  manibus  liven- 
tibus  auras."  The  livid  hues  of  death  are  seen  to  be 
gradually  receding  from  the  hands  stretched  out  as  if 
to  feel  after  something  more  substantial  than  the  empty 
breeze  ^\hich  is    playing   around.      I   ought   to  add  that 


22  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [1820— 

C.  W.  excelled  more  in  the  athletics  of  the  mind  than 
those  of  the  body,  but  he  was  by  no  means  deficient  in 
the  latter.  He  was  in  the  cricket  eleven,  which  was 
thought  by  his  coevals  to  be  no  small  honour.  He  carried 
his  head  erect,  and  had  something  of  that  eagle  eye  which 
(to  my  fancy)  characterized  him  in  after  life. 

Another  schoolfellow,  Sir  John  E.  Eardley  Wil- 
mot  writes :  — 

I  had  the  honour  of  being  a  contemporary  of  Dr. 
Wordsworth  at  Winchester  College,  although  two  or  three 
years  his  junior,  and  I  well  recollect  his  brilliant  career 
there.  Not  only  was  he  most  eminent  as  a  Greek  and 
Latin  scholar,  but  his  style  of  composition  in  Greek,  Latin, 
and  English  poetry  was  always  cited  as  a  model  by  his 
schoolfellows.  He  was  Gold  and  Silv^er  Medallist  respec- 
tively for  English  verse  and  for  elocution. 

Nor  were  these  distinctions  the  only  ones.  He  was  the 
first  in  all  those  athletic  exercises  which  are  prized  and 
honoured  by  schoolboys  no  less  than  proficiency  in  intellec- 
tual acquirements.  He  was  the  best  cricketer,  the  best 
football  player,  the  best  fives  player  with  both  the  hand 
and  bat,  and  the  best  runner  in  Winchester  School.  I 
well  recollect  him  performing  a  feat  which  no  other  boy 
at  Winchester  could  accomplish  :  this  was  to  run  from  the 
College  over  Twyford  Down  to  the  Windmill  and  back — a 
distance  of  nine  miles,  and  most  of  the  way  up  a  very  steep 
hill — within  the  hour  allotted  for  leave  out  between  twelve 
and  one  o'clock.  So  great  was  the  admiration  of  his  young 
companions  for  Wordsworth  junior  (for  he  had  John,  an 
elder  brother,  in  the  College,  but  less  distinguished),  that 
they  unanimously  accorded  to  him  the  name  of"  The  Great 
Christopher." 

The  followino^  letter  from  the   Master  of   rrinity 


—  1S30.]    LETTER  FROM  THE  MASTER  OF  TRIXI TV.      23 

will    happily    illustrate    the    account  of  Christopher 

Wordsworth's  conduct  as  a  prefect  : — 

Trinity  College,  Cambridge, 
Sept.  25///,  1823. 

My  dear  Chris, — It  was  quite  an  unexpected  pleasure 
to  me  to  find  that  you  had  been  appointed  a  Commoner 
Prefect.  I  am  wilHng  to  be  pleased,  because  I  suppose  it 
may  be  taken  as  an  indication  that  Dr.  Gabell,  upon  the 
whole,  is  not  ill-satisfied  with  your  proficiency  and  your 
general  conduct.  But,  at  the  same  time,  this,  like  other 
unexpected  honours,  we  must  not  forget,  will  be  attended 
with  its  dangers  and  temptations.  Power  is  a  perilous 
trust.  Can  one,  therefore,  be  without  some  share  of  appre- 
hension when  it  falls  into  so  juvenile  hands  as  yours  ?  Be 
faithful.  Don't  be  elevated,  and  above  all,  beware  of  being 
a  tyrant. 

On  the  subject  of  your  last  letter,  it  is  very  gratifying  to 
me  to  find  that  you  feel  it  so  seriously.  You  are  of  age 
and  of  understanding  to  be  confirmed,  and  when  an  oppor- 
tunity offers,  I  should  wish  your  mind  to  be  turned 
seriously  to  that  subject,  and  that  you  should  appear  before 
the  Bishop  with  a  good  purpose,  through  God's  help  and 
power,  to  take  upon  }-ourself  the  vows  and  engagements, 
that  you  may  not  forfeit  your  claim  and  title  to  the  bless- 
ings of  a  Christian.  3iut,  till  you  have  been  confirmed,  it 
is  more  correct  that  you  should  not  receive  the  sacrament, 
and  I  have  written  therefore  to  Dr.  Gabell,  to  beg  him,  if 
it  be  not  wholly  inconsistent  with  the  rules  of  the  school; 
that  he  will  dispense  v.'ith  your  attendance.  We  are  now 
in  the  depths  of  the  Fellowship  Examination.  We  have 
seventeen  candidates,  five  vacancies.  ...  I  hardly  know 
what  to  say  about  grapes  :  they  are  but  very  indifferent, 
small,  and  not  sweet,  from  the  wetness  of  the  season. 
However,  I  will  speak  to  Rowe  [the  Gardener],  and  see 
what  he  thinks.  Ever  most  affectionately, 

C.  W. 


24  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [1820— 

The  following  copy  of  bright  and  lively,  if  some- 
what careless  verses,  written  from  Cambridge  by 
the  schoolboy  of  fourteen  during  the  Christmas 
holidays  of  1822,  to  his  brother  Charles  at  Harrow 
(to  which  he  had  gone  in  1820,  when  his  brothers 
went  to  Winchester),  will  give  a  good  idea  of  their 
home  life  as  well  as  of  their  proficiency  in  study  : — 

Your  epistle,  dear  Charles,  gave  us  all  so  much  pleasure, 

So  charming  the  verse,  that  now  I  have  leisure, 

With  your  letter  before  me,  I  sit  down  to  try, 

To  excel  not  e'en  hoping  ;  but  halt!  by-the-bye, 

Well  now  I  remember  an  old  Roman  poet 

Says  just  what  I  mean,  so  his  words  here  I  quote, 

If  to  see  them  you  wish,  pray  look  in  the  note.^ 

You  desire  me  to  tell  what  is  present  and  past, 

And  what  is  to  come  ;  but  as  for  the  last, 

If  prophets  there  were,  is  Trumpington  Street 

A  place  very  likely  for  prophets  to  meet  ? 

As  for  present  and  past,  there's  the  Senate  House.     Well  ! 

What  of  that  to  a  Cantab'''  can  Christopher  tell  ? 

'Tis  true  we  went  out  (as  the  clock  of  St.  Mary's 

Struck  eleven,  mark  the  hour ! )  from  our  Trinity  Lares, 

The  Senate  House  filling,  here  ladies,  here  gownsmen, 

Here  masters  and  fellows,  here  farmers  and  townsmen. 

Such  a  medley  of  ages  and  sizes  I  saw. 

Dandies  crying  "^pon  honour,"  and  maidservants  "Law." 

We  entered  a  seat  ;  after  sitting  an  hour 

John  departed  ;  I  staid  ;  Dad  had  gone  long  before. 

'  Non  ita  certandi  c\\\i\^vi^,  (|uain  pro[)tcr  amorein 
Quod  te  iniiiari  avco. 

(Lucretius  dc  Homero  loquens. 
Sic  ego  do  Tk.) 
2  Here  used  for  one  wliosc  home  was  at  Cambridge.     [Note  by 
Charles  Wordsworth.] 


-1830.]  VERSES  U  'RITTEN  TO  HIS  BROTHER  CHARLES.  25 


The  place  nearly  full,  another  hour  past 

(And  nothing  begun)  just  as  dull  as  the  last  : 

I  was  wedged  in  so  tight  that  if  I  had  tried 

I  could  not  have  stirred,  so  close  every  side. 

Some  people  around  were  beginning  to  munch, 

But  I  lost  my  patience,  and  what's  worse,  my  lunch. 

■"Twas  past  three  an  half-hour,  my  stomach  declared  it, 

And  as  for  a  clock,  I,  I'm  sure,  could  have  spared  it. 

The  Vice-Chancellor  seated  (he'd  been  standing  before), — 

He,  poor  man,  must  have  thought  it  a  terrible  bore. 

His  seat  he  has  taken,  now  for  the  degrees. 

Mark  !  first  comes  the  Senior  Wrangler  of  Caius. 

A  knocking  of  feet  and  clapping  of  hands 

From  the  galleries  heard,  as  Primus  he  stands."* 

The  father  of  Caius,  by  the  right  hand  he  takes  him 

To  the  chair  of  the  V.C.,  then  take  oath  he  makes  him, 

"  To  keep  all  the  statutes,  observances,  right, 

And  not,  sciens,  volens,  by  day  or  by  night,* 

Break  the  compact  between  the  college  called  King's 

And  our  University,  and  such  like  things," 

But  all  this  you  know,  and  I  fear  you  will  scold  : 

I  have  nothing  to  tell  but  news  that  is  old. 

Let  me  see  !     Sir  P.  Malcolm's  been  here  with  his  brother, 

Mr.  Turner,  to  tea,  and  Mrs.  the  mother. 

Miss  Jones,  two  Miss  Blatchleys,  of  whom  one  'tis  said 

Young  Turner  at  the  altar  of  Hymen  will  wed. 

Now  young  Turner's  a  gownsman,  the  son  of  the  Dean, 

The  Master  of  Pembroke,  in  age  just  nineteen. 

But,  cruelty  dire  !  he  must  single  remain 

Till  A.B.  is  added  at  the  end  of  his  name. 

"  Here's  a  paradox  sure,  and  joke  upon  joke," 

Says  father — I'm  sure  he's  told  all  the  folk 

*  Holditch  of  Caius,  Senior  Wrangler,  1S22.      [Charles  Words- 
worth.] 

5  Excuse  some  words  dragged  in  for  the  sake  of  the  rhymes ; 
(For  poets  and  farmers  what  terrible  times  !). 


26  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [i8: 


Of  Cambridge  twice  o'er — "  ^Tis  Munchausen  again. 

Cataphelto  °  [sic)  is  here,  with  wonders  a  train, 

You  say  that  married  he  is  not  to  be 

Till  a  Bachelor,  and  has  obtained  his  degree. 

Sure  that^s  odd  ;  no  good  reason  the  young  people  parts, 

For  he's  shown  himself  long  since  a  Master  of  Hearts.'^ 

Last  Sunday  in  Hall  our  dinner  we  took, 

M s  gulphed,  when  we  met  him,  how  downcast  his  look  ! 

Your  racquet  we'll  look  for,  but  at  Cambridge  it's  not, 
So  we  fear  ;  but  one  thing  I  had  nearly  forgot, 
Our  books  are  come  home.     Very  well  they  are  bound. 
And  Dad  pays  the  bill,  just  seven  shillings  one  pound. 
No  nezu  books  have  we  bought  ;  but  pray  let  us  know 
What  book  Mr.  Watson  thought  fit  to  bestow. 
Write  quickly.     But  now  here's  an  end  of  this  pother, 
So  believe  me,  dear  Charles,  your  affectionate  brother, 

C.  W. 
Trinity  Lodge,  Jan.  27, 

[Mr.  C.  Wordsworth, 

Mrs.  Leith's, 
Harrow,  Middlesex.] 

On  October  31st,  1824,  the  Master  of  Trinity 
brought  out  his  work  "  Who  wrote  Icon  Basilik^  ?  " 
The  following  letter  announces  its  reception  : — 

Commoners,  Winchester,  Nov-  2Zth,  1824. 
My  dear  Father, — After  much  anxious  expectation 
your  book  subjected  itself  to  my  critical  perusal  and  to  the 
greedy  jaws  of  my  best  ivory  paper-knife.  I  read  through 
the  preface,  and  was  delighted  with  the  cut  upon  Gregory 
Blunt,  Fsq.  I  then  halted  a  second  to  gaze  upon  the 
elegance  of  the  exterior,  which,  methinks,  has  charms  to 

c  See  Cowpcr's  "Task,"  Bk.  IV.  :  — 

"And  Katterfelto  with  his  hair  on  end 
At  his  own  wonders,  wondering  for  liis  bread." 


— 1830.J  ''  WHO   WROTE  ICON  BASILIKE?"  27 


smooth  the  ruffled  brow  of  the  severest  Aristarchus.  I 
thought,  however,  that  it  would  be  a  shame  to  exhaust  all 
my  happiness  at  one  draught ;  an  idea  therefore  suggested 
itself  to  me,  which  every  one  must  allow  to  have  been  the 
height  of  politeness,  inasmuch  as  I  made  such  an  extra- 
ordinary sacrifice  of  my  own  enjoyment  to  that  of  others. 
Taking,  therefore,  the  volume  in  my  hand,  and  scrupulously 
observing  Horace's  directions  in  the  graceful  carriage  and 
delivery  of  my  burden,  I  hastened  to  commiunicate  my 
effusions  of  happiness  with  Dr.  Williams,  most  graciously 
offering  him  at  the  same  time  the  accommodation  of  a 
prior  perusal.  He  accepted  the  offer  joyfully,  and  he  yester- 
day informed  me  that  he  was  engaged  in  the  statement  of 
Dr.  Gauden's  case,  complaining  at  the  same  time  that  his 
leisure  did  not  admit  of  his  making  as  much  progress  as 
he  could  wish.  Do  you  intend  sending  him  a  copy  ?  The 
Warden  ''  is  quite  at  a  loss  what  to  do  on  these  cold,  windy, 
rainy  days  .  .  .  and  would^  I  am  sure,  be  grateful  for  any 
amusement  you  could  afford  him.  ...  Is  not  the  country  in 
a  bad  way  }  I  pray  most  sincerely  every  day  for  the  good 
estate  of  the  Catholic  Church.  I  hope  John  will  think  it 
his  duty  to  take  orders  as  soon  as  possible  in  her  defence. 
With  best  love  to  him, 

I  remain,  your  dutiful  and  affectionate  son, 

Christopher  Wordsworth. 

To  HIS  Brother  John. 

WincJiester,  Wednesday,  AlarcJi  2yd,  1825. 

My  dear  John, — I  received  your  letter  yesterday,  and  I 

should  not  mind  writing  ten  pages  in  reply  if  I  thought  I 

could  express  half  the  feeling  of  pleasure  which  it  gave 

me.    I  should  have  said  that  your  success*  without  the  aid 

''  Huntingford,  Bishop  of  Hereford^  known  as  an  editor  of 
Pindar  and  other  classical  works. 

*  Probably  in  winning  a  Bell's  Scholarship,  which  he  did  this 
year. 


28  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [1820— 

of  squares  and  circles  would  be  a  dangerous  precedent,  I 
mean,  if  your  pre-eminence  in  classic  lore  was  not  a  power- 
ful check  to  any  one  else  being  so  presumptuous  as  to  fling 
away  his  shield  and  fight  only  with  a  sword.  I  ought  to 
tell  you  that  Williams  was  almost  as  happy  as  I  was.  He 
is  an  excellent  man  ;  and,  as  it  were  to  reverse  the  characters 
in  Virgil  where  Euryalus'  affectionate  apprehensions  for 
his  mother  call  forth  the  filial  love  of  lulus,  "  Et  patriae 
mentem  strinxit  pietatis  imago,"  "  How  glad  I  am,"  says 
he,  "  for  your  father's  sake." 

I  have  been  engaged  during  this  last  ten  days  in  Easter- 
task,  and  I  have  at  last  comprised  my  notions  of  "  Horticul- 
tura  apud  Italos  Antiquiores"  in  185  lines, 

By-the-bye,  how  did  a  certain  head  of  a  college 
and  late  chaplain  to  his  Grace  of  Canterbury,  take, 
Mr.  Brougham's  civil  notice  of  him  in  the  House  some 
nights  ago  } '  How  many  more  freeholds  for  Westmoreland 
has  he  purchased  ?  .  ,  .  Williams  is  convinced  that  Gauden 
was  a  rascal.  Soms  Sir  James  Mackintosh's  son.  Not  so 
Sir  James  Mackintosh.' 


The  followinor  to  his  brother  Charles,  Qrivingf  his 
recollections  of  an  Easter  holiday  (1825)  in  the  Isle 
of  Wight,  shows  that  his  sensitiveness  to  natural 
beauty  had  kept  pace  with  his  literary  and  scholastic 
development : — 

I  have  been  to  the  Isle  of  Wight.  I  have  seen  Caris- 
brook  Castle.  I  have  drank  water  from  Carisbrook  Well, 
360  feet  in  depth  ;  you  know  that  pebbles  cry  nickety-nock 

'  My  father  (says  the  Bishop  of  S.  Andrew's)  had  bought  small 
freeholds  in  ^Vestnloreland  for  his  three  sons,  in  order  that  they 
might  vote  for  the  Lowthers  against  Brougham  (fagot  votes),  for 
which  the  latter  attacked  hirn  in  the  House  of  Commons, 

'  Who  (says  the  Bishop  of  S.  Andrew's)  reviewed  my  father's 
book  in  the  "  Edinburgh." 


—1830.  TOWN  IN  THE  ISLE  OF  WIGHT.  29 

when  they  arrive  at  the  bottom  [vide  "  Rejected  Addresses," 
R.S.)-  I  have  seen  the  Gothic  portals  through  Avhich  the 
unhappy  Charles  marched  with  his  head  uncovered, 
attended  by  soldiers,  to  his  dungeon  ;  I  have  rung  the  iron- 
tongued  bell  of  the  Castle,  whose  sound  he  used  to  listen 
to  anxiously,  if  haply  it  might  announce  any  messenger  of 
joy.  I  have  seen  the  barred  lattice  through  which  he 
endeavoured  to  escape,  and  I  have  visited  the  church 
where  his  daughter  Elizabeth  lies  with  only  a  plain  stone 
to  cover  her. 

After  describing  his  passage,  he  adds  : — 

There  was  not  a  wave  on  the  sea.  I  reckon  it  one  of 
the  great  misfortunes  of  my  life  that  I  have  never  seen  a 
wave  of  respectability  for  size.  We  landed  about  seven  in 
the  evening  at  Cowes — very  hungry — good  dinner — whist — 
went  to  bed.  Next  morning  up  at  six — no  prospect — thick 
mist — could  not  see  our  noses — biscuit  tough — walked  to 
Newport,  five  miles — large  and  fair  town.  Carisbrook 
Castle  on  a  hill  commands  a  fine  viev/ — very  old,  very  large, 
and  in  excellent  condition.  Saw  sheets  of  paper  flying 
about.  Thought  they  might  be  sheets  of  the  Icon — mis- 
taken. Beautiful  day — hot  walking — country  not  pretty  ; 
excellent  breakfast,  porter,  ale,  bacon  and  eggs,  after  walk 
of  twelve  miles. 

On  towards  the  Needles — grievously  chagrined  at  not 
being  able  to  see  them  for  the  mist.  This  is  the  extreme 
point  of  the  island  ;  and  as  you  face  it  you  have  on  your 
right  and  left  a  coast  of  more  than  600  feet  in  perpen- 
dicular ;  underneath  us  we  could  just  see  the  sea  foaming 
through  the  mist.  Then  there  were  sea-mews  screaming 
around  us,  and  gulls  and  cormorants  startled  by  our  voices 
from  the  crannies  in  the  rocks  beneath  us.  We  returned 
along  the  coast  to  the  right,  descended  the  shore  into  a 
most  beautiful  bay  (called  Alum  Bay).  In  the  middle 
there  was  a  very  clear  and  cold  spring,  which  gushed  out 


30  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [1S20- 


of  the  rocks  into  a  natural  basin,  the  water  of  which  was 
the  best  I  ever  tasted.  We  walked  under  the  cliffs,  which 
(though  there  was  a  thick  mist  above  them)  were  gleaming 
in  the  sun  ;  they  were  tinged  with  many  hues,  blended 
together  in  the  most  beautiful  manner.  Here  a  rock  of 
green  sand,  here  a  towering  pinnacle  of  red,  there  an  ex- 
tensive vein  of  delicate  pink,  grey,  and  yellow.  It  is  a 
most  wonderful  natural  curiosity,  and,  as  our  guide  told  us, 
is  much  frequented  by  geologists.  We  passed  along  the 
coast  till  we  arrived  at  an  inn  called  Freshwater  Gate. 
Very  hungry,  having  performed  thirty  miles  that  day — 
delightful  dinner — rose  at  6.30.  Bathed  in  the  sea,  rather 
cold,  with  more  sand  clinging  to  my  feet  than  at  Cromer. 
Ross  returned  to  the  Needles.  We  proceeded  through  a 
very  beautiful  country  along  the  coast,  seventeen  miles 
before  breakfast  to  Sandrock  Hotel.  What  a  breakfast ! 
T  see  the  frothing  ale  before  me,  and  the  chops  and  cutlets. 
Fisher's  brother  having  a  tight  shoe,  could  not  proceed,  so 
we  hired  a  gig  for  two,  and  a  steed  for  the  other  to  ride. 
Drove  through  the  most  beautiful  country  I  ever  was  in — 
pendent  rocks,  embowered  with  woods,  rich  vales,  and  the 
most  clear  streams  I  ever  saw.  The  Chine,  which  looks 
on  the  sea,  being  a  deep  chasm,  wooded  on  both  sides,  and 
a  stream  running  down  the  midst,  I  should  guess  to  be 
something  resembling  what  you  described  in  your  letter  to 
Miss  Hoare  as  having  seen  in  the  north.  .  .  .  Slept  that  night 
at  Ryde.  .  .  .  The  next  day  we  finished  our  circuit  of  the 
island,  and  set  sail  in  the  packet  for  Cowes  on  our  return. 
Owing  to  a  calm,  they  were  behind  time  in  reaching 
Winchester.  Consequently  Williams  has  to  express  his 
regret,  but  he  is  very  sorry,  and  he  vnist  give  me  a  hundred 
lines  of  Cicero,  or  else  it  will  be  a  precedent  for  un- 
punctuality  to  others  at  some  future  time.  Will  you 
write  to  me  .-'  How's  my  bat,  &c.,  &c.  t  Tell  John  with 
best  love  that  I  shall  write  directly.  Has  he  got  a 
iiorse  or  a  )inntcr  /     Did  he  sec  young  Mr.  Mackintosh's 


■1850]         LETTER   TO  HIS  BROTHER  JOHN.  31 


speech   at  (torn)  when  Sir  James  was   forced  to  leave  the 
room  ? 

Commoners,  Winton,  Jufie  igth,  1825. 

My  dear  John. —  .  .  .  What  do  you  think  of  a  trip  to 
Winchester  ?  Consider  now.  Fisher  and  myself  give  a  dinner 
on  Wednesday  after  the  business  of  the  day  is  over,  to 
eight  or  ten  particular  friends.  After  which  we  start  by 
the  first  conveyance,  the  night  coach,  for  London.  Now 
could  you  make  one  of  the  number,  and  return  with  me  to 
Hampstead  -  in  the  evening  .'  He  really  would  consider  it 
a  particular  favour,  and  so  should  I.  I  am  afraid  there  is 
but  little  chance  of  persuading  my  father  to  come.  Is 
there,  father .''  But  consider  what  an  interesting  place  it  is. 
You  may  see  the  palace  which  Morley  built,  and  the  alms- 
houses which  Morley  built,  and  the  bridge  which  Morley 
built — and  all  for  nothing.  Then  consider  how  delighted 
the  Warden  would  be  to  see  you  after  what  he  said  of  your 
"  Six  Letters,"^  so  would  Williams,  who  has  a  great  respect 
for  you,  and  our  distinguished  relative,  as  he  calls  him. 
Consider.  There's  the  election,  if  you  like  it — Dulce 
Domumi — superannuates'  ball — the  races,  &c.j  «S:c.  There 
are,  moreover,  a  great  man\'  other  reasons  why  you  should 
both  come.  Well  then,  you  will  come.  Pray  do. 
Hankey's  uncle,  Alexander,  and  the  new  judge  pay  us  a 
visit  at  Cambridge  on  the  Norfolk  circuit  ?  Well  then, 
you  will  come,  and  oblige 

Your  dutiful  son,  and  your  affectionate  brother, 

Chr.  Wordsworth. 

I  speak,  you  know,  at  twelve  on  Wednesday,  so  that  you 
may  come  in  time  to  laugh  at  me  or  not,  as  you  like. 

The  following  letter  shows  the   pride  which  the 

-  The  residence  of  their  kind  friends,  jNIrs.  and  Miss  Hoare. 

3  "  Six  Letters  to  Granville  Sharp  on  the  Use  of  the  Definite 
Article  in  the  Greek  Testament/'  published  by  the  Master,  when 
Fellow  of  Trinity,  in  1802. 


32  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [1820— 


Master  of  Trinity  took  in  the  achievements  of  his 
three  briHiant  sons  : — 

Trinity  College,  Cambridge^ 

June  22nd,  1825. 
Mv  DEAREST  CllRIS, — We  were  exceeding-jy  rejoiced  to 
hear  of  your  distinguished  success,  both  in  the  Latin 
prose  and  the  Enghsh  verse  ;  and  I  congratulate  you  upon 
it  very  heartily.  This  I  ought  to  have  done  sooner,  and 
should  have  done  it,  and  at  the  same  time  have  sent  5'ou 
5/.  (which  I  now  enclose)  as  a  token  of  my  satisfaction, 
had  you  not  asked  for  my  opinion  of  the  exercise  which 
you  forwarded  to  John.  Having  had  a  number  of  exer- 
cises to  look  over  (Bachelor's  Essays,  Norrisian's,  Porson's, 
Chancellor's  English  Poems,  &c.,  &c.),  I  reall}^  could  not 
get  time  to  look  at  yours  till  yesterday.  I  like  it  very 
much.  The  manner  of  Cicero,  which  is  a  very  great  point, 
you  have  caught,  in  very  many  places,  exceedingly  well, 
and  I  hope  you  will  continue  the  study  of  him  who  is  by 
far  the  best  model  of  a  Latin  style.  .  .  .  John  is  well,  and 
desires   his   love.     Charles,  no   doubt   you   know,   has  got 

the  Lyrics." 

Ever,  &c., 

Ciiu.  Wordsworth. 

In  the  summer  of  1S25  Christopher  Wordsworth 
left  Winchester,  after  having  won  many  distinctions, 
including  the  Gold  Medal  for  the  English  Essay  in 

1 824,  and   the   Gold   Medal    for  the  Latin  Essay  in 

1825.  But  it  was  not  only  in  the  field  of  intellect 
that  he  won  his  spurs  at  Winchester  ;  he  was 
also,  as  we  have  seen,  distinguished  in  the  domain 
of  cricket.  In  the  first  match  between  Harrow 
and  Winchesier,  played  at  Lord's  in    1825,  Charles 

Prize  for  Latin  Ode  at  Harrow. 


—1830.]  HARROW  AND  WINCHESTER.  33 

Wordsworth  was  captain  of  the  Harrow,  and  Chris- 
topher Wordsworth  a  member  of  the  Winchester 
eleven.  It  was  on  this  celebrated  occasion  that 
Christopher  Wordsworth  "  caught  out  "  'Manning. 
The  Bishop  of  Lincoln  used  to  refer  with'great  glee 
in  after  years  to  a  Wykehamist  dinner,  at  which  this 
fact  was  asserted,  and  questioned  ;  whereupon  one 
of  the  guests  verified  it  by  producing  the  original 
score,  which  he  had  kept  in  his  pocket-book  ever 
since  the  glorious  day  when  he  had  himself  been 
the  scorer.  Generally,  as  well- as  in  connection  with 
the  subject  of  this  memoir,  the  score  of  the  first 
of  the  almost  continuous  series  of  matches  between 
these  two  public  schools  has  an  historical  interest. 
We  therefore  print  it  in  extenso : — 

[1825.] 

WINCHESTER  AND  HARROW 

At  Lord's  Ground. 

Winchester. 
ist  Innings.  2nd  Innings. 

Wordsworth,  b  Wordsworth    3  c  Holden 36 

Papillon,  b  Wordsworth i  not  out 10 

Templeton,  b  ^Vords worth o  b  Wordsworth 34 

Macleane,  b  Wordsworth o  b  Manning 8 

Bayley,  b  Wordsworth 34  hit  his  wicket 10 

Wright,  b  Holden    14  c  Barclay.: 8 

Elliott,  c  Gambler    17  c  Wordsworth 14 

Meyrick,  run  out 16  c  Manning  6 

Price,  run  out    7  hit  his  wicket 13 

Cooke,  not  out 5  b  Wordsworth 2 

Knatchbull,  b  Wordsworth 14  leg  before  wicket...  60 

Byes 2                 Byes  7 

113  208 

D 


34 


SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE. 


[182c 


Harrow. 


ist  Inninsfs. 


Wordsworth,  b  Bayley    17 

Barclay,  b  Bayley    16 

Defifelt,  b  Wright     33 

Lewis,  b  Bayley 5 

Popham,  b  Price 13 

Manning,  b  Price    6 

Davidson,  b  Price  4 

Brand,  b  Price    o 

Holden,  b  Price 2 

Grimstone,  b  Price 4 

Gambler,  not  out   5 

Byes    6 


2nd  Innings. 

b  Price 5 

c  Templeton 4 

b  Price 6 

b  Price 4 

run  out o 

c  Wordsworth  o 

b  Price 11 

c  Templeton o 

b  Price 8 

b  Price  18 

not  out  13 

Byes   4 


Winchester  won  by  135  runs. 


73 


Apropos  of  the  Cardinal  we  may  mention  that 
many  years  afterwards,  when  visiting  Lincoln  Ca- 
thedral, he  spoke  to  the  verger  of  his  early  friend- 
ship with  the  Bishop,  adding,  "If  we  were  to  meet 
now,  he  would  call  me  Henry,  and  I  should  call  him 
Christopher."  "  Christopher  "  never  told  this  story 
without  adding,  with  a  humorous  smile,  "But  you 
know  he'd  burn  me  if  he  coiildr  Mr.  Manning,  the 
father,  was  proprietor  of  Combe  Bank,  a  beautiful 
residence  at  Sundridge,  Kent,  a  parish  of  which 
Dr.  Wordsworth  was  rector ;  hence  there  was  an 
intimate  acquaintance  between  the  two  families 
when  the  boys  were  young. 

In  the  September  of  the  same  year  the  Master 
writes  : — 


Tell    John    I    hope    he    is   reading'   mathematics.     The 


■\Zzo?^INTERVAL  BETWEEN  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE.  35 


cleverest  men,  by  far,  in  our  present  examination  (for 
Fellowships),  indeed,  the  only  men  oi  real  abilities  (with  the 
exception  of  Jeremie)  are  the  Mathematicians.  Besides, 
now  that  Dobree  is  gone,  I  am  far  from  certain  that  we 
can  place  implicit  reliance  on  the  examiners  in  a  Univer- 
sity Examination.  I  mean  my  fear  is  that  he  is  looking 
too  undividedly  to  the  Craven  Scholarships.  I  am  clear 
that  the  decision  in  them  is  a  perfect  lottery,  compared  with 
the  certainties  of  examinations  for  Scholarships  ^  or  Fellow- 
ships in  Trinity, 

Between  Christopher  Wordsv^orth's  leaving  Win- 
chester in  1825  and  formally  commencing  residence 
at  Cambridge  there  elapsed  about  a  year,  during 
v^rhich  time  he  seems  to  have  lived  in  Trinity  Lodge, 
his  father's  house. 

The  follov^ing  extracts  from  his  journal  not  only 
give  us  glimpses  of  the  Cambridge  of  that  day  from 
an  exceptionally  favourable  point  of  viev^,  but  show 
something  of  the  processes  by  which  the  writer's 
mind  was  being  developed  and  built  up,  as  well  as 
the  natural  warmth  of  his  heart,  and  his  almost 
womanly  dutifulness.  A  brilliant  young  man  of 
remarkable  promise  is  too  apt  to  be  led  astray  by 
the  notice  both  of  his  elders  and  contemporaries  ; 
but  throughout  the  journal  there  will  be  found  no 
record  of  a  compliment  addressed  to  himself.  Or 
the  other  hand  his  enthusiasm  for  learning  displays 
itself  in  every  page,  while  an  undercurrent  of  deeper 
and  holier  thought  begins  to  make  itself  felt,  side 

^  John  W.  obtained  a  Trinity  Scholarship  in  1826,  and  a 
Fellowship  in  1830. 

D    2 


36  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [1820— 

by  side  with  the  boyish  light-heartedness  and 
thorough  enjoyment  of  life,  which  are  after  all  a 
valuable  part  of  the  stock-in-trade  of  one  whose 
resources,  physical  hardly  less  than  mental,  were 
destined  in  future  years  to  be  severely  taxed. 

After  some  entries  referring  to  his  studies,  and  to 
his  difficulties  in  mastering  Euclid,  he  writes  : — 

Sunday  to  Simday,  Oct.  i6th. — This  week  I  stayed  at 
Hampstead  ^  with  John.  Charles  went  on  to  Cambridge, 
which  place  he  left  on  Thursday  for  Christ  Church,  Oxford, 
to  commence  his  residence  there  as  a  commoner.  I  met  at 
Hampstead  Mr.  Crabbe  [the  poet],  who,  though  old,  and 
altered  by  illness,  retains  that  cheerfulness  and  sprightly 
alacrity  which  are  considered  the  property  and  chief  recom- 
mendations of  youth.  His  memory  is  excellent,  even  in 
the  minutest  things.  He  told  us  that  Lord  Chesterfield  was 
the  first  person  who  introduced  the  word  "  unwell  "  into 
common  use,  and,  countenanced  by  his  sanction,  it  was 
forthwith  admitted  into  the  vocabulary  of  fashion.  I  met 
likewise  Miss  Joanna  Baillie  and  Mrs.  Schimmelpenninck, 
a  lady  of  considerable  talent,  and  fine  features,  who 
knows  Hebrew,  and  is  an  adept  in  the  science  of  phreno- 
logy. She  admired  John's  head,  and  told  me  that  I  was 
naturally  disposed  to  the  study  of  history,  &c.,  which,  as  I 
did  not  experience  any  great  pleasure  in  the  perusal  of 
Mr.  Mitford's  details  of  Hellenic  lore,  I  am  more  inclined 
than  willing  to  disbelieve.  Read  seven  cantos  of  Fairfax's 
Tasso.     More  in  them  of  Virgil  than  of  Homer. 

Saturday. — I  left  Hampstead  for  Cambridge.  Found 
my  father  in  good  health.  He  had  examined  the  candi- 
dates for  the  Greek  professorship  [vacated  by  the  recent 
death  from  cholera  morbus,  as  this  journal  notes,  of  Pro- 

c  With  Mrs.  and  Miss  Hoare.  Mr.  Samuel  Hoare  had  died  not 
long  before  this. 


—1830.]  JOURNAL.  37 

fessor  Dobree]  in  such  questions  as  "  Who  were  the 
authors  of  the  Greek  Lexicons,  and  what  are  they  ?  When 
did  they  Hve  ?  &c.,  &c."  Hare  and  Rose  answered  the 
best. 

Sunday,  i6th. — I  am  now  settled  comfortably  in  a 
snug  room  with  500  volumes  of  books  around  me.  Quis 
me  solutis  est  beatior  airis  ? 

Monday. — Miss  Hoare  sent  me  a  russia  writing-case,  a 
very  handsome  present. 

Tuesday. — Made  some  excellent  resolutions,  which  1 
hope  more  than  expect  to  keep. 

The  journal  then  gives  an  account  of  the  election 
of  the  Greek  Professor,  Scholefield,  "  praeter  suam 
et  omnium  expectationem  ;"  but  the  details,  mixed 
up  as  they  were  with  contemporary  politics,  may 
perhaps  be  allowed  to  sink  into  oblivion. 

This  journal  contains  several  appreciative  notices 
of  the  sermons  of  "  Mr.  Graham,  of  Christ's  Col- 
lege," and  "  Mr.  Le  Bas."  The  latter  seems  to  have 
been  specially  admired  both  as  a  preacher ''  and  con- 
versationalist. 

Thursday,  Oct.  2'jth. — I  now  read  between  seven  and 
eight  hours  a  day. 

Friday. — A  letter  from  Charles  at  Christ  Church,  Oxford, 
to-day.  There  discipline  seems  more  strictly  attended  to 
than  here.  It  seems,  however,  to  make  him  happy,  which 
is  the  great  point. 

Saturday. — Finished  the  Second  Book  of  Euclid  to- 
day. 

Sunday^  2)0th. — My  eighteenth  birthday. 

'  "  If  he  were  not  deaf,  he  would  be  the  most  entertaining  man 
— almost — I  ever  saw." 


38  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [1820— 

Monday. — My  father  returned  from  Sir  G.  Beaumont's, 
.  .  .  My  uncle  is  staying  there,  in  high  spirits,  though 
his  eyes  are  painful.  The  first  edition  of  his  Miscellaneous 
Poems  being  at  last  sold,  after  the  lapse  of  five  years,  he 
is  about  to  publish  a  new  one  in  five  volumes.  His  pub- 
lishers, Messrs.  Longman,  thinking  his  volumes  rather 
sedentary  articles,  do  not  seem  very  zealous  that  their 
shelves  should  be  again  tenanted  by  such  guests,  and  have 
therefore  ofi"ered  but  150/.  for  an  unlimited  impression. 
This  he  refused.  Messrs.  Robinson  have  entered  into  a 
compact  to  give  him  300/.  for  an  impression  of  1000 
copies.  My  uncle  has  an  income  of  something  more  than 
600/.  a  year.  He  gives  to  the  education  of  his  son  John  at 
Oxford  400/.  this  year,  and  has  been  giving  about  300/. 
for  three  years.  Mr.  Southey's  "  Vindiciae  Eccl.  Angli- 
canae  "  is  to  be  dedicated  to  him  ;  it  is  made  up  chiefly  of 
his  conversation.  John  got  the  first  prize  for  Latin  verse 
in  Trinity.  I  had  the  pleasure  of  being  the  first  to  com- 
municate the  news. 

Sunday. — A  very  eloquent  sermon  from  Mr.  Le  Bas  in 
the  afternoon  at  St.  Mary's,  a  holy  life  illustrated  as  being 
a  reasonable  sacrifice  of  every  member  of  the  body,  and 
every  faculty  of  the  soul  to  the  service  of  God,  in  a  very 
forcible  and  energetic  manner.  I  rarely  saw  so  large, 
never  a  more  attentive  audience. 

Monday. — Translated  into  Latin  a  passage  out  of 
Burnet's  translation  of  Sir  T.  More's  "  Utopia."  Began  to 
read  Hume  after  dinner  to  my  father,  in  the  reign  of 
James  I. 

Saturday,  Oct.  loth. — Mr.  Professor  Sedgwick,  Mr. 
Whewell,  Mr.  Bridges,  Mr.  Skinner  of  Jesus  College,  dined 
here.  Mr.  Sedgwick  a  first-rate  man,  certainly.  So  is 
Mr.  Whewell,  and  particularly  entertaining  in  conversa- 
tion. Schleiermacher's  book  on  St.  Luke,  translated  by 
Thirlwall,  talked  about,  the  translation  much  praised. 
Speaking  of  the   London   University,  Mr.  Whewell  said 


—1830.]  JOURNAL.  39 

that  when  he  was  on  his  travels  at  Vienna,  he  met  a 
gentleman  in  a  considerable  company  of  Germans,  &c., 
who,  not  being  a  proficient  in  the  language  of  the 
country,  and  seeing  that  Mr.  Whewell  was  an  English- 
man, addressed  his  conversation  to  him.  They  men- 
tioned the  London  University.  "  And  what  is  your 
opinion  at  Cambridge^  concerning  its  chance  of  success  ?  " 
"  Oh,"  says  Mr.  W.,  "  we  don't  trouble  ourselves  much 
about  it."  ''Aye,  I  suppose  you  will  still  have  the 
aristocracy  of  rank  at  your  University  ?  "  "  And  the 
aristocracy  of  talent  and  science  too  ;  but  I  think 
the  superintendence  of  Mr.  Brougham  will  not  be  very 
beneficial  to  the  institution."  "  Well,"  answered  the 
stranger,  "  but  whom  could  /  have  chosen  for  the  office  .-* " 
This  "  I,"  to  the  great  astonishment  and  alarm  of  Mr.  W. 
turned  out  to  be  no  less  a  man  than  Mr.  T.  Campbell,  the 
editor  of  the  New  Monthly  Maga::ine,  and  the  organizer  of 
the  whole  scheme.  My  father  heard  likewise  from  him 
that  Mr.  T.  De  Quincey,  the  English  opium-eater,  had 
undertaken  to  review  his  (my  father's)  book  on  Eikon 
Basilike  in  Knighfs  Quarterly  Magazine  in  decided  hos 
tility  to  the  opinions  there  expressed  ;  but  that,  having 
read  it,  he  wrote  to  the  editor  to  tell  him  that  he  would 
send  him  a  review  of  the  book  if  he  pleased,  but  it  must 
be  now  on  the  other  side.  To  have  convinced  an  enemy 
is  something,  but  to  have  convinced  such  an  enemy  as  De 
Quincey  is  most  gratifying.  .  .  . 

Monday  (no  date). — The  Orestes  is  a  dull  play,  though 
there  are  passages  which  must  have  been  very  interesting 
to  an  Athenian  audience,  especially  the  Acropolis  scene, 
and  the  character  of  Cleophon,  which  is  well  drawn.  Be- 
sides, it  abounds  with  political  passages  to  amuse  and 
instruct  the  ambassadors  at  the  Atovvata  ra  ev  aareo. 

Tuesday. — Mr.  Hamilton^  told  me  (at  dinner)  that  Cam- 
bridge was  ten   years  behind   Dublin    in  science,  and   a 

^  A  Fellow  of  Trinity  ;  afterwards  Dean  of  Salisbury. 


40  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [1820— 

hundred  behind  France.  It  seems  our  Cotes  and  our 
Newtons  have  lived  for  very  little,  if  the  volatile  genius  of 
France  is  able  so  far  to  outstrip  our  coldness  and  taci- 
turnity, which  one  would  suppose  are  so  v/ell  adapted  for 
mathematical  calculation. 

Wednesday. — Drank  wine  with  Mr.  Sedgwick.  Mr. 
Babbage,  who,  they  say,  is  a  most  wonderful  man,  was 
there,  likewise  Mr.  Hamilton,  Mr.  Higman,  Mr.  Sharp,  my 
brother  John,  and  three  other  men,  whom  I  knew  not. 
I  heard,  what  I  had  heard  before,  that  Mr.  Arnold  of  Oriel, 
Oxon,  is  writing  a  history  of  Rome.  He  was  the  author 
of  that  review  of  Niebuhr  in  the  Quarterly  Review, 
against  which  Mr.  Rose  is  so  severe  in  the  preface  to  his 
Sermons.     He  is  considered  a  first-rate  man. 

Satui'day. — Archdeacon  Bayley,  Mr.  Le  Bas  came  to 
us  to-day,  Mr.  Empson  (a  Winchester  man,  and  a  professor 
at  Hertford),  who  gave  us  a  long  and  very  favourable  ac- 
count of  Mr.  Brougham's  private  character,  and  his  filial 
affection  to  his  mother,  now  living,  to  whom  he  writes  three 
times  every  week.  Mr.  J.  Williams  was  the  first  man  who 
directed  his  attention  to  the  study  of  Demosthenes,  a  little 
before  the  Queen's  trial,  before  which  time  he  used  to  abuse 
the  study  of  classical  authors  in  the  Edinburgh  Reviezu. 
Mr.  Brougham  says,  in  his  letter  of  advice  to  Mr.  Macaulay 
about  his  son,  now  a  Fellow  here,  whom  he  is  bringing  up 
to  the  Bar  and  the  Senate,  that  he  wrote  over  that  cele- 
brated peroration  of  his  speech  at  the  Queen's  trial  twenty 
times  at  the  least !"  .  .  .  A  very  entertaining  party.  Sir  J. 
Mackintosh  wrote  two  articles  in  the  Edinburgh  Revieiu 
about  Reform,  another  on  Madame  de  Stael,  and  another  on 
Dugald  Stewart,  and  several  in  the  Monthly  on  Burke's 
speeches. 

Tuesday  (no  date). — Mr.  Tindal  [afterwards  Chief  Justice] 

^  The  Bishop  of  S.  Andrew's  has  a  copy  of  this  memorable 
letter  in  MS.  The  words  are  :  "  I  composed  it  twenty  times  over 
at  the  very  least." 


—1830.]  JOURNAL.  41 

went  to  London  ;  he  is  a  very  kind  and  agreeable  man  ; 
he  gave  me  some  advice,  if  my  mind  was  ever  bent  to 
pursue  the  study  of  the  law.  By  his  desire  I  wrote  2,  serious 
letter  to  his  son  at  Winchester,  a  youth  of  as  much  talent 
as  his  father  could  wish,  but  rather  more  volatility. 

TJmrsday. — Began  Thucydides  to-day — four  chapters. 

Friday. — Read  Macaulay's  article  on  Milton,  Edinburgh 
Review^  No.  84.  Sir  J.  Mackintosh  says  that  he  abuses 
King  Charles  too  much,  and  the  Roundheads  not  enough. 

Tuesday. —  Charles  came  from  Christ  Church,  Oxon,  to- 
day. Classical  studies  at  Oxon  seem  not  to  be  carried  on  so 
well  as  at  Cambridge.  The  Divinity  better.  The  forma- 
lity of  society  worse.  Dress  better  (i.e.  worse) ;  not  so  much 
speculation  in  things  which  are  too  deep  for  them — few 
gentlemen  set  up  for  blackguards  there,  and  a  good  many 
blackguards  for  gentlemen.  Charles  went  to  the  Debating 
Society,  viilgb  Union,  in  the  evening :  heard  Praed  on  the 
"  march  of  intellect,"  i.e.  London  University.  The  Attor- 
ney-General was  there,  and  much  pleased. 

Wednesday. — Mr.  Tindal  came  at  two  o'clock  this  morn- 
ing for  "  Dies  computi ;"  off  at  twelve.  Mr.  Goulburn  busy 
canvassing  for  the  representation  of  Cambridge  University.' 

Thursday. — Finished  Phoenissse;  the  beginning  glorious, 
and  if  1700  lines  was  the  general  length  of  Greek  plays, 
you  would  not  complain  of  its  prolixity. 

Friday. — Began  the  Medea  ;  Person's,  Elmsley's  and 
Matthiae's  Notes.  A  great  sensation  created  by  the  state 
of  the  banks  here,  as  everywhere  else.  All  the  doors  of 
the  banking-house  crowded  with  farmers  with  long  faces. 
The  heads,  &c.,  of  the  Colleges  agree  to  support  their 
respective  bankers,  and  take  their  notes  as  usual,  which 
has  restored  the  balance  of  credit  in  a  great  measure. 

Sunday. — Heard  from  Miss  Hoare.  She  mentions  the 
frightful  state  of  the  banks  in  London,  notes  being  circu- 

'  The  Bishop  of  S.  Andrew's  says  he  was  always  a  guest  at 
Trinity  Lodge  when  he  came  for  this  purpose. 


42  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [1820— 

lated  wet  from  the  press,  and  sovereigns  hot  from  the 
mint.  At  the  door  of  one  [of  the  banks]  an  old  woman  fell 
down  in  a  fit.  She  was  conveyed  into  the  house,  which 
occasioned  a  great  concourse,  whence  arose  a  report  that 
there  was  a  sharp  run  upon  the  bank — a  falsehood  which 
the  report  verified. 

Tuesday. — Commemoration  ;  some  clapping  in  the  Col- 
lege Hall  during  the  distribution  of  prizes,  upon  which  my 
father  got  up  and  made  a  speech  of  two  sentences,  which 
had  the  desired  effect.  Mr.  Goulburn,  Mr.  Bankes,  the 
Bishop  of  Bristol,  &c.,  &c.,  dined  in  Hall.  I  went  to 
chapel  in  the  morning,  heard  a  dull  sermon,  and  the  long 
catalogue  read  of  benefactors."  One  would  almost  scruple 
to  be  a  benefactor  to  the  College,  for  fear  of  wearing  out 
the  patience  of  the  audience  on  this  day,  there  being  a 
sufficiency  already  to  require  the  exercise  of  that  virtue  to 
the  greatest  degree. 

Wednesday. — The  panic  in  the  "money-market"  seems 
to  have  subsided  ;  news  of  the  Emperor  of  Russia's  death 
arrived  yesterday. 

I  began  Algebra  last  week  ;  received  a  letter  from  the 
secretary  stating  that  I  was  elected  a  member  of  the 
S.P.C.K.  Stupid  debates  in  Parliament  about  the  country 
bankers.     Stocks  very  low. 

Friday. — Finished  writing  a  sermon  for  Russell  Skinner 
(Dr.  Walton's  nephew  and  curate)  on  Gen.  xxvii.  33.  My 
determination  to  be  in  the  Church  is  strengthening — this 
time  last  year  I  had  almost  decided  on  the  Bar.  Dr. 
Walton  [his  godfather]  is  an  excellent  man,  tells  very 
good  stories,  and  with  a  great  deal  of  liveliness  and  wit. 
He  ought  to  be  brought  into  a  more  leading  station  in  the 
Church. 

Wednesday. — Went  with  Miss  Hoare,  Mrs.  Pryor,  and 
my  father  to  Mr.  Marsh's  chapel  [at  Hampstead]  ;  after- 

-  TIic  list  of  benefactors  has  been  revised  and  curtailed  since 
this  date. 


— 1 830.]  JO  URNAL.  43 

wards  to  the  workhouse,  to  see  five  negroes  who  had  been 
rescued  by  an  English  vessel  from  a  slave-ship. 

Finished  the  Heraclidai  to-day.  My  wishes  for  my 
future  life  are  to  study  Divinity  very  hard  for  my  good, 
and  Greek  (the  Attic  theatre  particularly)  for  my  amuse- 
ment. 

Friday. — Went  to  London,  to  the  Diorama;  the  view  of 
Rosslyn  Chapel  is  the  most  perfect  deception  I  ever  saw. 

Heard  from  John.  He  got  over  his  English  declama- 
tion (on  Lord  Bacon's  character)  with  great  satisfaction. 

Saturday. — Began  the  Bacchse. 

Sunday. — Received  the  Sacrament.  God  grant  that  I 
may  become  better  and  better,  every  time  I  come  to  His 
altar !  Heard  in  the  evening  an  excellent  sermon  from 
Mr.  Marsh. 

:js  -X-  :}:  *  *  ;f: 

Easter  Monday? — Finished  the  Bacchae.  A  fine  play — 
some  scenes  look  as  if  they  had  been  written  (if  we  could 
judge  from  the  harmony  and  equability  of  the  verse,  and 
greater  compactness  of  ideas)  at  an  earlier  period  than  it 
was  acted,  or  the  body  of  the  play  was  written. 

Tuesday. — Began  Septem  contra  Thebas  of  ^schylus. 
What  a  change  from  Euripides  !  They  seem  almost  to 
have  written  in  a  different  language. 

Wednesday. — Looking  into  Bede's  Works,  5  vol.  folio., 
I  see  there  are  copious  excerpta  in  the  second  volume  from 
the  De  Officiis,  De  Senectute,  and  De  Amicitia  of  Cicero, 
with  many  variations  in  the  reading  from  the  received  text. 
I  am  going  to  make  a  collation  of  them,  for  are  they  not 
of  as  much  authority  as  a  MS.  in  the  seventh  or  eighth 
century  1 

Friday. — To-day  and  to-morrow  John  sits  for  a  Trinity 
College  Scholarship.  May  he  be  successful.  According 
to  my  computation  from  the  ist  September  to  the  end  of 
March,  being  seven  months,   T  have   read   twelve  Greek 

^  Birdbrook  Rectory,  Dr.  Walton's. 


44  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [1820— 

plays,   nearly   one    book   of  Thucydides,    nearly   all    the 
Olympians  of  Pindar,  and  four  books  of  Euclid. 

Wednesday. — Began  the  Persje.  .  .  .  Blomfield  is  happier 
in  his  derivations  than  in  his  conjectural  emendations  of 
the  text.  The  preface  is  well  worth  reading,  ^schylus 
is  a  poet  of  great  zeal  and  fervour  in  every  subject  which 
he  treats  ;  but  how  must  his  heart  have  glowed  when 
writing  on  a  theme  in  which  he  himself  was  not  only  an 
eye-witness,  but  an  actor — and  that  such  a  glorious  theme 
to  a  patriotic  soul  as  the  battle  of  Salamis  ! 

Saturday. — Saw  in  the  newspaper  to-day  that  John  was 
elected  a  scholar  of  Trinity  College. 

Monday. — Rode  over  by  Horseheath  to  Cambridge. 
My  father  followed  in  his  carriage. 

Wednesday. — Miss  Catharine  and  Miss  Rachel  Gurney 
came  to-day,  very  old  and  esteemed  friends  of  my  father. 
Dr.  Walton  also  came. 

Sunday. — My  father  had  a  very  pleasing  letter  from  my 
Aunt  Braithwaite  [a  Quakeress],  who  is  now  in  America, 
on  a  mission  to  the  Society  of  Friends  .there.  A  most 
excellent  sermon  at  St.  Mary's  in  the  afternoon,  from  Mr. 
Rose,  on  the  duties  of  a  priest,  and  the  preparation 
necessary  for  that  office.  He  dined  with  us  after  church  ; 
he  is  a  very  pleasing  person,  he  is  a  good  scholar,  and  a 
good  man.  He  is  going  to  undertake  the  editorship  of 
the  Museum  Criticuni,  and  had  been  to  Oxford  to  engage 
contributors  for  the  purpose,  but  he  was  disappointed.  He 
does  not  seem  to  think  very  favourably  of  the  system  of 
education  pursued  there,  with  a  view  to  the  formation  of 
scholars. 

Monday. — .  .  .  I  find  from  a  conversation  with  Rowe, 
our  gardener,  that  Dr.  15arrow  used  to  go  out  of  the  King's 
Room,  through  the  little  room  in  which  I  am  now  writing, 
along  a  picture-gallery  which  is  now  the  laundry,  down 
some  steps  into  a  little  building  called  "  Barrow's  Study," 
and  there  probably  his  sermons  were  composed. 


—1830.]  JOURNAL.  45 

Tuesday. — Mr.  Rose  .  .  .  drank  tea  here ;  he  gave  an 
account  of  an  interview  he  had  with  Professor  Hermann  of 
Leipsic.  The  professor  is  a  short  man  ;  he  appeared  in 
large  tall  boots  and  spurs,*  with  the  keys  of  all  his  closets, 
&c.,  hanging  over  his  arm.  Mr.  R.  did  not  speak  German, 
nor  the  professor  English  ;  they  conversed  in  Latin.  Mr. 
R.  said  that  he  looked  forward  with  pleasure  to  the  ap- 
pearance of  the  professor's  edition  of  Sophocles'  CEd.  Col., 
as  there  were,  he  was  compelled  to  confess,  several  passages 
which  he  could  make  no  sense  of  at  all.  "  Nor  I  either," 
answered  the  editor.  Mr.  Rose  likewise  told  me  that 
the  late  Professor  Dobree  had  nearly  given  up  reading 
Sophocles,  as  there  were  scarcely  ten  lines  together  where 
he  did  not  meet  with  some  impediment.  How  imperfect 
human  learning  is,  which  creates  often,  as  much  as  it 
removes,  difficulties  !  Sophocles,  however,  seems  to  be  an 
author  with  whom  a  foreigner  may  be  acquainted,  but 
never  intimate  ;  for  in  confirmation  of  Hermann's  and 
Dobree's  opinion,  Dr.  Bayley  told  me  that  Elmsley  had 
given  him  a  copy  of  an  edition  of  Sophocles,  which  he 
(Dr.  E.)  had  printed,  but  never  published,  with  the  text 
corrected  according  to  his  own  notions  of  the  meaning. 
These  corrections  were  very  far  removed  from  the  received 
readings. 

****** 

Read  Griesbach's  Prolegomena  (to  N.T.),  and  likewise 
Knapp's  preface.  I  am  commencing  an  attentive  perusal 
of  the  New  Testament,  from  which  God  grant  I  may  rise 
wiser  and  better. 

****** 

Wednesday. — Mr.  Goulburn  and  Dr.  Bayley  set  off  to 
London  at  twelve  o'clock  in  the  night.    The  latter  is  a  man 

*  "  Nine  years  afterwards,"  says  the  Bishop  of  S.  Andrew's,  "  I 
called  upon  him  at  Leipsic,  and  he  was  dressed  in  the  same  way — 
as  if  prepared  to  go  out  hunting,  which,  I  believe,  he  frequently 
did." 


SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [1820— 


of  more  brilliancy  of  wit  and  fanciful  illustration  than  I  have 
ever  seen  in  any  one  else.  He  looked  over  John's  Greek 
Ode  (Delphi),  and  gave  a  very  gratifying  opinion  as  to  its 
merits. 

Friday. —  .  .  .  Played  at  cricket  with  Thornton  and 
Prendergast.  Heard  from  Charles.  He  is  mentioned  as 
likely  to  get  the  Hexameter  Verse  prize  at  Oxford.  I 
hope  he  may.  He  wishes  that  Oxford  and  Cambridge 
should  play  a  match  at  cricket. 

...  I  am  reading  the  siege  of  Plataea  in  the  second  book 
of  Thucydides.  What  a  minute  and  interesting  descrip- 
tion !     But  it  is  rather  hard  to  construe. 

Sjinday. — Read  one  hundred  pages  of  "  Bentley  on  Free- 
thinking."  Very  spirited  and  ingenious.  Looked  into 
Carpzovii  Critica  Sacra.  Mr.  Brougham  in  his  speech  on 
the  abolition  of  slavery  in  the  House,  two  or  three  nights 
ago,  having  presented  a  petition  to  that  effect,  which  some 
member  affirmed  was  signed  only  by  Methodists  and  dis- 
senters, observed  that  there  was  one  name  attached  to  the 
petition  which  he  was  glad  to  see,  and  that  of  a  man  who 
he  was  sure  was  no  advocate  of  Methodism — he  meant  Mr. 
Wordsworth.* 

Wednesday. — Busy  writing  out  John's  Greek  Ode,  Latin 
Ode,  and  Iambics  for  the  University  prize."  Took  them 
at  eleven  o'clock  this  night  to  Catharine  Hall,  the  Vice- 
Chancellor's. 

Friday. — Long  letter  this  morning  from  my  uncle 
[W.  W.]  about  Westmoreland  election  and  Mr.  Brougham. 

Shortly  after  this  he  mentions  with  great  admira- 
tion a  sermon  from  "a  gentleman  of  St.  John's,  Mr. 

^  His  brother,  the  ^Master  of  Trinity,  had  signed  the  anti- 
slavery  petition  some  little  time  before. 

"  The  exercises  for  competition  were,  of  course,  not  permitted 
to  be  sent  in  in  the  author's  own  handwritincj. 


—  1830.]  JOURNAL.  47 

Blunt.  It  was  an  application  of  Paley's  argument 
(in  the  Horse  Paulinae),  of  undesigned  coincidence, 
to  the  Evangelists,  and  especially  for  the  confirma- 
tion of  the  accounts  with  respect  to  ...  .  miracles. 
He  pronounced  Seleucia  with  i  long." 

Monday. — All  the  walls  are  covered  with  electioneering 
placards,  and  all  the  shop-windows  talk  politics.  No  places 
to  be  got  in  coaches.  The  Attorney-General  has  engaged 
all  the  Telegraph  (coach)  for  the  lawyers,  and  all  the  Nor- 
wich coaches  are  to  be  as  heavily  laden  next  week  with 
Mr.  Bankes'  voters  as  they  are  with  turkeys  at  Christmas. 
Paragraphs  and  rumours  in  newspapers,  of  which  Mr.  Goul- 
burn  has  his  share.  I  am  afraid  that  he  despises  them  too 
much.  .  .  .  The  exercises  written  for  Porson  prize  came  from 
the  Greek  professor  to-day  to  my  father.  There  are  some 
very  good  indeed,  but  John's  is  inferior,  I  think,  to  none, 
except  perhaps  one,  which  I  take  to  be  Kennedy's. 

The  next  few  pages  are  full  of  electioneering 
details : — 

A  most  severe  contest  contemplated.  It  will  cost  even  the 
unsuccessful  candidates  1000/.  The  Dean  of  Peterborough  ^ 
gave  us  some  interesting  anecdotes  about  Bentley,  while  my 
father  and  myself  were  walking  with  him  in  the  King's  Room 
[in  Trinity  Lodge]  (the  room  where  James  and  many  of 
his  predecessors  and  successors  had  comedies  acted  by  the 
students,  and  where  Queen  Anne  knighted  Sir  I.  Newton). 
The  staircase  of  this  house  was  the  principal  source  of  all 
the  feuds  between  him  and  the  College  from  1707  to  1742. 
It  cost  430/.  He  had  ordered  the  workmen  to  build  it 
without  the  consent  of  the  College,  and  after  a  struggle  of 
two  years,  in  which  time  he  proved  himself  an  adept  in  the 
art  of  tormenting,  he  compelled  them  to  pay  for  it.     All 

'  Dr.  Monk. 


48  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [i82<>— 

the  rooms  were  hung  with  tapestry,  for  which  he  substituted 
wainscotting,  and  he  removed  an  Oriel  window  near  the 
tower  in  the  State  Room,  besides  changing  all  the  Gothic 
windows  into  modern  sashes — a  most  audacious  and 
slashing  piece  of  emendatory  criticism. 

Friday,  July  Jth. — Saw  in  Cambridge  paper  that  John  had 
got  second  Porson  prize. 

Sunday,  July  gth. — Commencement ;  a  very  eloquent  ser- 
mon from  Mr.  Rose.  The  principal  topic  was  the  awful 
consequences  attendant  on  the  grasping  and  speculative 
genius  of  the  present  day,  and  the  influence  which  it  has 
in  directing  the  powers  of  the  intellect  to  exclusively 
scientific  objects  as  the  most  likely  to  bring  a  speedy  har- 
vest with  less  toil  to  the  cultivator,  instead  of  those  solid 
pursuits,  the  toil  of  which  is  greater,  the  harvest  less  speedily 
reaped  and  not  so  readily  disposed  of  at  the  selfish  and 
sordid  market  of  human  judgment. 

Tuesday. — Selwyn  of  St.  John's  has  got  the  prizes  for 
Latin  and  Greek  Odes  and  Epigram.  Went  to  Senate 
House,  heard  them  recited.  Selwyn  read  Kennedy's  Por- 
son prize,  he  (K.)  being  unable  to  attend. 

Thursday. — Charles  and  I  set  out  on  horseback  to  ride 
to  London. 

Friday. — Dined  at  Lower  Edmonton.  Put  our  horses  up 
at  "Red  Hart,"  Fetter  Lane.  Took  hackney-coach  to  Lord's 
Cricket  Ground  ;  played  two  hours  ;  bought  two  bats  ; 
thence  down  to  Harrow  to  the  "King's  Head,"  seven  o'clock 
evening.  Walked  down  to  cricket-ground  of  the  school  ; 
received  very  civilly  ;  played  an  hour  ;  slept  at  "  King's 
Head." 

Saturday. — Clay  came  down  to  breakfast  from  town. 
Played  a  match  with  school,  and  dined  with  them  in  a 
marquee  on  the  ground  ;  enjoyed  the  day  very  much. 

Wednesday!' — Found  it  rather  hard  work  to  buckle  to  to 

•*  *'At  Buxted,  my  father's    living  (joined  with   Uckfield),  in 


—1830.]  JOURNAL.  49 

Euclid  again.  Began  third  book.  Amused  ourselves  this 
rainy  day  with  an  endeavour  to  construct  a  boat  for  the 
pond  out  of  an  old  barrel.  John  came  to  dinner  at  four 
from  Cambridge  ;  he  has  got  a  second  Declamation  prize. 

Friday. — To-day  I  was  confirmed  by  the  Bishop  of 
Chichester  in  Buxted  Church  ;  he  gave  us  a  very  good 
charge.  At  the  conclusion  of  the  service  640  were  con- 
firmed of  all  ages. 

Saturday. — Made  some  calls  with  my  father  in  Uckfield. 
Read  Russel's  Tour  in  Germany.  What  a  delightful  resi- 
dence must  the  Court  of  Weimar  have  been  when  it  em- 
braced in  its  society  at  one  period  Gothe,  Wieland,  Schiller, 
and  Herder !  Were  I  king  of  this  country,  poets,  painters, 
and  learned  men  should  soon  be  seen  in  palaces  again. 
Were  George  IV.  to  write  verses,  they  would  sell  so  pro- 
digiously as  to  enable  him  to  diminish  the  taxation  of  his 
people  in  a  most  agreeable  and  efficient  manner.  .  .  . 

Sunday,  July  i6th. — Went  with  father  to  Buxted  Church 
in  the  morning  and  Uckfield  in  afternoon.  After  church 
we  walked  on  the  hill  opposite  our  house.  The  evening 
was  a  most  lovely  one,  and  the  prospect,  after  the  dreary 
flats  of  Cambridgeshire,  was  doubly  delightful.  We  talked 
of  the  best  method  of  preaching.  He  recommended  that 
of  making  a  few  notes  and  then  entering  the  pulpit,  with 
no  other  assistance  than  the  Bible  and  his  own  eloquence. 
This  mode  he  himself  practised  at  Bocking,  first  in  the 
National  Schoolroom  when  explaining  the  Scriptures  to 
the  children.  .  .  .  He  used  to  stroll  about  the  fields  on 
Saturday  mornings  and  speak  his  sermon  to  the  winds  and 
hedges.  .  .  .  He  added  that  he  never  made  such  a  progress 

Sussex,  exchanged  for  Sundridge,  when  he  became  Master  of 
Trinity.  He  wished  to  retain  Sundridge,  though  far  inferior  in 
value,  but  the  Archbishop,  who  was  patron  in  both  cases,  would 
not  allow  it  to  be  separated  from  Lambeth,  so  Dr.  Doyly,  who 
had  been  Rector  of  Buxted,  succeeded  to  both  Lambeth  and 
Sundridge." — Bishop  of  S.  Andrew's. 

E 


so  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [1820- 

in  Divinity  and  knowledge  of  the  Scriptures  as  at  that 
period.  ...  In  the  evening  I  read  a  sermon  to  the  family. 

Thursday. — I  spend  my  time  pretty  much  as  follows  : — 

7.  Get  up.     Read  Demosthenes  till 

8.30.  Prayers.  Breakfast  :  tea  and  bread-and-butter  and 
toast. 

9.30.  Up  to  my  room  again.  Euclid,  ten  problems,  and 
algebra  till 

I,  Out  cricket  or  riding  till 

4.  Dine.  Leisure.  Light  reading  :  Greek  Play,  yEschylus 
or  Aristophanes,  100  lines,  till 

8.30.  Tea.     Thucydides,  ten  chapters. 
10.  Prayers. 

II,  Some  Diatessaron.     Bed. 

I  am  very  happy  here,  and  I  hope  I  am  thankful. 

On  Monday,  July  31st,  he  and  his  brother  went 
up  for  Harrow  and  Winchester  and  Eton  and  Win- 
chester matches. 

Slept  at  Ibbotson's  Hotel. 

Tuesday. — Breakfasted  with  Papillon  at  Ibbotson's. 
Played  at  Lord's  all  day. 

Wednesday. — Harrow  and  Winchester  came  on  this 
morning.  Dined  with  Mr.  Ward,  M.P.  for  London,  the 
proprietor  of  the  ground,  a  Winchester  man,  and  the  first 
cricketer  in  the  world.     To  Hampstead  in  the  evening. 

TJmrsday. — All  day  at  Hampstead.  Quite  satisfied  that 
Winchester  must  beat.  They  did  beat  by  about  400 
runs.  .  .  . 

Saturday. — Arrived  at  Buxtcd.  Winchester  beat  Eton 
by  sixty  runs,  huzza  ! 

I  ciij(^ycd  this  week  very  much,  meeting  so  many  old 
faces  at  Lord's,  and  such  an  interesting  spectacle  it  does 
one's  heart  good  to  see  it,  especially  as  Charles  and  I  were 
both  engaged  on  different  sides  in  the  siniilar  contest  at 
the  same  place  this  time  last  year. 


—  1830.]  JOURNAL.  SI 

After  describing  a  sojourn  at  Brighton  for  his 
father's  ^  health,  he  says  : — 

Tuesday,  Sept.  igth. — Here  I  am  lying  on  my  sofa,  with 
my  drab  reading-coat  on,  in  the  upper  rooms  of  the  Lodge- 
turret  staircase,  a  freshman  of  Trinity  College.  .  ,  .  From 
Friday  to  this  time  I  have  been  from  the  upholsterer  to  the 
ironmonger,  from  the  ironmonger  to  the  upholsterer,  order- 
ing Pembroke  tables,  round  ditto,  small  ditto,  sofa,  chairs, 
easy  ditto, book-shelves,  curtains  (scarlet),  fire-irons,  snufiers, 
tea-pot,  coffee-machine,  candlesticks,  coal-scuttle  to  fill 
the  coal-scoop,  and  a  coal-scoop  to  fill  the  coal-scuttle,  and 
a  great  many  more  useless  things  qiicB  nunc  pmscribere 
longtcni  est.  .  .  . 

I  have  now  kept  journal  a  year.  .  .  . 

Sunday,  Oct.  i$th. — I  went  to  chapel  yesterday,  and 
dined  in  Hall  for  first  time.  I  look  into  my  journal  with 
the  same  feelings  as  one  speaks  to  an  old  friend  whom  one 
has  not  seen  for  a  long  time.  Now,  journal,  what  shall  I 
tell  you  ?  My  father  is  gone  to  Brighton  again,  and  I 
heard  the  day  before  yesterday  he  was  going  on  well, 
which  I  know,  journal_,  you  will  be  glad  to  hear ;  and  next 
I  have  been  trying  to  do  the  fifth  book  of  Euclid,  and  I 
can't  succeed,  which  I  know,  journal,  you  will  be  sorry  to 
hear.  I  have  read  the  Choephorse  and  Eumenides  of 
^schylus  since  I  saw  you  last  and  some  Juvenal  and 
Tacitus,  and  a  little  Thucydides.  I  have  been  to  shoot 
[at)  snipes  in  the  fens.  I  have  played  at  cricket  and  got 
beaten  by  the  snobs.  I  have  played  at  tennis  and  bil- 
liards. Charles  has  returned  to  Ch.  Ch.,  and  my  book- 
shelf is  going  to  be  painted,  and  I  have  had  some  books 

^  An  old  servant  of  the  family,  Sophia  Carter,  told  one  of  his 
daughters  in  after  years  that  Christopher  Wordsworth  had  sat 
up  day  and  night  for  six  weeks  during  the  Master's  illness,  and 
loved  to  recall  his  good-humoured  behaviour  to  the  servants,  with 
whom  he  was  a  favourite. 

E   2 


52  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [1820— 


bound.  I  have  written  to  St.  James's  Chronicle  a  letter 
signed  Cantabrigiensis  which  they  say  is  too  smart  and 
witty  to  insert,  but  they  will  do  it  if  I  wish.  I  have  formed 
two  or  three  acquaintances,  Frere,  Kemble  (the  Saxon 
scholar),  Birkbeck,  Pickering. 

Saturday. — Tennis  with  Merivale.    Rowed  to  Chesterton. 

Tuesday,  Oct.  ^Qth. — My  nineteenth  birthday. 

Saturday. — My  father,  who  came  from  Brighton  last 
night,  elected  to-day  Vice-Chancellor.  Sworn  in  at  the 
Lodge.  God  grant  he  may  get  through  the  labours  of  the 
office  prosperously. 

At  this  point  Christopher  Wordsworth's  academic 
career  may  be  said  to  have  fairly  commenced/     The 

'  The  Bishop  of  Lincoln's  son,  Canon  Wordsworth,  has  kindly 
supplied  us  with  the  following  details  respecting  Trinity  in  his 
father's  time  : — 

"At  the  time  Avhen  Christopher  Wordsworth  entered  at  Trinity 
the  '  seniority '  which  Gunning  knew,  and  of  which  he  gives  so 
dark  a  picture  in  his  Reminiscences  (sub  anno  1798),  had  passed 
away.  Mathias,  Mark  and  C.  J.  Blomfield  had  long  since  gone 
out  of  residence.  Person  and  Mansel  had  been  lost  to  Cambridge 
for  many  years.  The  duller  men,  who  had  often  afforded  them 
merriment,  were  all  gone  excepting  J.  H.  Renouard,  who  was  now 
vice-master,  the  only  fellow  who  attended  the  late  supper  in  Hall, 
and  detained  the  scholars-in-waiting  to  say  grace  for  him.  We 
have  his  speaking  likeness  sketched  from  a  silhouette  cut  out  of 
sticking-plaster  by  a  neat-fingered  undergraduate  beneath  the  cover 
of  his  gown  while  the  vice-master  was  pompously  explaining  7vhy  he 
could  7iot  consent  to  sit  for  his  portrait.  W.  Pugh  still  remained, 
but  his  mind  soon  became  a  wreck.  He  was,  however,  allowed  to 
take  part  in  the  college  examinations,  wherein  his  judgment  was 
much  respected.  When  we  turn  to  the  list  of  junior  fellows,  the 
prospect  is  more  hopeful.  Dobrce  has  lived  barely  long  enough 
to  hand  on  Person's  torch  to  John  Wordsworth — such  was 
Mr.  Shillcto's  judgment  of  the  succession  of  Greek  scholarship  in 
the  college  and  university.  The  tutors,  until  after  the  brothers 
had  taken  their  degrees,  were  Whewell,   R.  W.  Evans,  Peacock, 


—1830.]  UNDERGRADUATE  LIFE.  53 

brilliancy  of  that  career  will  be  sufficiently  indicated 

by  the  mere  list  of  the  distinctions  v/hich  he  won. 

and  Higman,  J.  C.  Hare  (of  whose  teaching  F.  D.  Maurice  spoke 
so  enthusiastically),  Fisher_,  Coddington,  and  Thorp  were  their 
assistants.  Also  Airy,  Thirlwall  and  F.  Martin.  Other  lecturers 
were  Romilly,  J.  A.  Barnes,  C.  J.  Myers,  Jeremie  and  Challis. 
Adam  Sedgwick  (who  had  seen  a  man  who  called  Newton 
'friend')  ■^2,'=,  pandoxator.  Scholefield  had  just  been  advanced 
to  the  Greek  professorship.  In  addition  to  some  of  the  above- 
named,  H.  Venn  Elliott  was  a  college-preacher. 

"  Looking  over  the  list  of  younger  men  in  the  college,  and 
throughout  the  university,  we  find  among  those  who  went  out  in 
1827,  first  and  foremost^  B.  H.  Kennedy  of  St.  John's  (Pitt  Scholar 
and  Porson  Prizeman,  who  had  won  several  prizes  for  Epigrams 
and  Greek  and  Latin  Odes).  Hoveden,  Carus  and  Cleasby, 
Butterton  (Master  of  Uppingham),  Jarrett  and  T.  Chatfield 
also  acquired  various  honours.  Passing  to  the  men  of  1828-29, 
who  may  have  come  into  competition  with  Christopher  Wordsworth 
in  some  of  the  earlier  contests  of  his  undergraduate  course,  we 
see  notably  W.  Selwyn  (Craven  Scholar,  Classical  Medallist,  Greek 
and  Latin  Ode  and  Epigrams),  T.W.Peile,  of  Repton,  Bishop  Perry, 
J.  H.  Evans,  of  Sedbergh,  W.  B.  Tate,  Trin.  (Bell's  Scholar.— For 
this  Chr.  Wordsworth  could  not  compete,  as  his  eldest  brother 
held  one) ;  Soames  (Craven  Scholar  and  Medallist),  T.  J.  Phillips, 
Arthur  Martineau,  Cavendish  (Duke  of  Devonshire)  and  J.  Prince 
Lee  (Craven  Scholar)  of  Trinity,  Bishop  Philpoit,  H.  S.  Hildyard 
(Bell's  Scholar  and  Members'Prize),  Capel  Lofift  (Craven  Scholar), 
T.  Scott,  and  T.  Butler.  In  his  own  year  (1830)  the  distinguished 
classical  scholars  were  Steel  (of  Harrow),  Burchah,  Wilkinson, 
and  Lord  A.  Hervey  {Trin.),  C.  Merivale  (Latin  Ode  and 
Epigram,  1829),  Tucker  (Brown  Scholar,  Pet.). 

"  The  juniors  who  might  have  entered  into  competition  with 
him  in  their  first  years  were  C.  R.  Kennedy  (Pitt  Scholar,  Porson 
Prize,  Greek  and  Latin  Ode),  Blakesley  (Classical  Medal),  Walsh, 
Lushington;  Shilleto..  Dobson,  Thompson  (Members'  Prize), 
Spedding  and  Alford  (ditto),  and  Heath,  Trin.;  G.  Selwyn,  yit?//., 
G.  S.  Venables,  y"e?i-//j- ;  F.  Tennyson  (Greek  Ode),  C.  Tennyson 
(Turner),  G.  P.  Cookesley  and  J.  E.  Bromby  (Pitt  Scholars). 

"  The  Kennedys  and  Selwyns  have  carried  off  many  distinctions 


54  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [1820— 

It  would  be  difficult  to  find  a  parallel  instance  of 
three  brothers,  all  within  the  space  of  five  years, 
carrying  off  so  many  University  honours  and  prizes. 
The  following  is  the  list  of  them  : — 

John  Wordsworth,  the  eldest,  won  at  Cambridge 
a  University  Bell  Scholarship,  1825  (this  cannot 
be  held  by  two  brothers  at  one  time)  ;  Latin  Verse 
prize  at  Trinity  College,  1825  ;  University  Porson 
prize  for  Greek  Verse,  1826  ;  Second  Latin  Decla- 
mation prize,  Trinity  College,  1826  ;  Reading  prize 
(for  the  lessons  read  as  Scholar  in  Chapel),  1827  ;  a 
Trinity  Scholarship,  1826;  a  Trinity  Fellowship 
1830. 

Charles  Wordsworth,  the  second,  won  at  Oxford 
the  University  Latin  Verse  prize  (on  "  Mexico  "), 
the  Christ  Church  Latin  Verse  prize  (on  '*  Athenae  "), 
and  a  Fell  Exhibition,  all  in  1827,  for  which  dis- 
tinctions he  was  named  for  a  Studentship  by  the 
Dean  (Smith)  at  the  end  of  the  year  (one  of  the 
first  Studentships  given  away  for  merit),  together 
with  his  friends,  Walter  K.  Hamilton  (afterwards 
Bishop  of  Salisbury)  and  Henry  Denison  (brother 
of  Bishop  Hamilton's  predecessor),  named  respec- 
tively by  two  of  the  Canons ;  a  First  Class  in 
Litteris  Humanioribus  in  1830,  and  the  University 

at  Cambridge;  but,  so  far  as  we  are  aware,  no  instance  has 
occurred  where  any  single  scholar  has  won  more  numerous 
considerable  honours  than  Christopher  Wordsworth  did.  The 
printed  compositions  of  the  three  brothers  make  up  a  volume  of 
respectable  bulk,  of  which  a  few  copies  were  bound  in  red  and 
gold  with  the  title  '  Tria  juncta  in  uiio.'  " 


—1830.]  UNIVERSITY  DISTINCTIONS.  55 

Latin  Essay  prize  in  1831.  Besides  these  intel- 
lectual distinctions,  he  was  also,  in  1827,  one  of  the 
Oxford  eleven  in  the  first  cricket-match  between 
the  two  Universities,  and  in  1829  both  one  of  the 
eight  in  the  first  inter-University  boat-race,  and  one 
of  the  eleven  in  the  second  cricket-match. 

Christopher  Wordsworth,  the  youngest,  won  at 
Cambridge  the  First  Latin  Verse  prize  at  Trinity 
College,  the  University  Latin  Verse  prize  ("  Iphi- 
genia  in  Aulide  "),  and  the  University  English  Verse 
prize  ("  The  Druids  ")  in  1827  ;  First  English  De- 
clamation, Trinity  College,  First  Latin  Declama- 
tion, Trinity,  First  Latin  Verse  prize,  Trinity, 
Tripos  Verses,  written  by  request  ("  Bibliomania"), 
University  Latin  Prize  ("Hannibal"),  University 
English  Verse  prize  ("  Invasion  of  Russia"),  Greek 
Epigram,  Latin  Epigram,  University  Porson  prize 
for  Greek  Verse  (Troil.  and  Cressid.  III.  3).  In 
fact,  in  1827  and  1828,  he  had  swept  away  so  m.any 
prizes  that  in  1829  the  college  tutors  dissuaded  him 
from  entering  the  lists  again,  as  hard  upon  other 
competitors — probably  such  a  compliment  as  was 
never  paid  before  or  since  to  any  undergraduate. 

"Chris.,"  writes  the  master  to  Joshua  Watson, 
November  11,  1828),  "has  just  got  another  prize 
for  Latin  Verse,  which  completes  the  list  of  all  he 
could  possibly  have  got  within  the  college." 

In  1829  only  two  distinctions  are  recorded,  no 
doubt  for  the  reason  given  above,  the  First  Reading 
prize  (Trinity),  and  the  University  Craven  Scholar- 


56  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE  LIFE.  [1820— 

ship.  In  1830  he  took  his  degree  as  Senior  Classic 
in  the  Classical  Tripos,  14th  Senior  Optime  in  the 
Mathematical  Tripos,  won  the  First  Chancellor's 
Medal  for  Classical  Studies,  and  was  elected  Fellow 
of  Trinity  College. 

The  following  letter  from  Christopher  Words- 
worth's old  master  at  Winchester,  shows  how  deep 
an  interest  he  took  in  his  distinguished  pupil's 
success : — 

Winchester,  June  26,  i^2y. 
Mv  DEAR  Sir, — I  had  seen  with  no  small  pleasure  in 
the  newspapers  the  account  of  your  having  gained  the 
English  Verse  Prize,  but  I  was  ilot  prepared  to  hear  of 
such  an  accumulation  of  honours  as  has  fallen  to  the  lot  of 
your  brothers  and  yourself.  From  the  satisfaction  which 
your  success  has  given  me,  I  can  easily  imagine  how  your 
father  must  be  overjoyed.  He  knows  too  well  how  to 
chasten  his  joy,  otherwise  I  should  really  fear  for  him  the 
fate  of  Diagoras.  Tres  Olynipioiiicas  una  e  doino  prodire, 
is  more  than  that  worthy  could  have  boasted,  had  he  not 
reckoned  himself  Pray  give  my  hearty  congratulations  to 
Dr.  Wordsworth  on  what  must  be  so  gratifying  to  him  as 
the  proof  of  the  actual  merit  of  his  sons,  and  the  earnest  of 
their  future  distinction.  I  beg  you  also  to  accept  for  your- 
self, and  to  present  to  your  brother,  my  warmest  acknow- 
ledgment of  the  honour  you  have  reflected  on  the  place  of 
your  education. 

I  am  glad  to  hear  of  your  determination  to  pursue  the 
study  of  mathematics  in  the  summer,  as  I  should  be  sorry 
that  you  should  leave  any  region  of  learning  unexplored^ 
or  your  academical  fame  incomplete. 

I  request  you  to  give  my  best  compliments  to  Dr.  Bayley. 
I.  know  the  warm  interest  he  takes  in  your  welfare,  and 
how  much  he  will  be  pleased  with  your  success. 


—1830.]  UNIVERSITY  DISTINCTIONS,  57 

With  every  good  wish  to  yourself  and  your  family^ 
believe  me,  my  dear  sir, 

Yours  very  sincerely, 

D.  Williams. 
I  hope  to  hear  the  result  of  your  annual  examination. 

All  three  brothers  were  soon  engaged  as  official 
lecturers  in  their  colleges.  In  estimating  the  dis- 
tinctions of  the  three  it  is  only  fair  to  bear  in  mind 
that  at  Oxford  the  same  University  prize  can  only  be 
obtained  once,  while  at  Cambridge  there  is  no  such 
restriction. 

This  account  may  fitly  close  with  an  anecdote 
which  Mr.  Goulburn,  M.P.  for  Cambridge  Univer- 
sity, and  Chancellor  of  the  Exchequer,  used  to  tell 
of  the  Duke  of  Wellington,  A  copy  of  Charles 
Wordsworth's  Latin  Verse  prize  poem  on  "  Mexico" 
was  lying  on  the  Duke's  library  table,  and  when  a 
friend  (perhaps  Mr.  Goulburn  himself)  took  it  up, 
the  Duke  said  to  him,  "  I  consider  the  father  of  the 
young  man  who  wrote  that  prize  poem  to  be  the 
happiest  man  in  the  kingdom  ;"  and  being  asked 
why,  he  answered,  "  Because  each  of  his  three  sons 
has  this  year  (1827)  got  a  University  prize:''  a 
remarkable  testimony  to  the  value  which  the  Duke 
set  on  University  distinctions,  though  himself  not 
a  University  man. 


CHAPTER  III. 

EARL  Y  MANHOOD  AND  EARL  V  TRA  VELS. 

We  must  now  turn  from  Cambridge  to  West- 
moreland, and  from  the  bustling  scenes  of  academic 
life  to  influences  of  a  loftier  and  calmer  kind. 

The  journal  already  quoted  contains  an  account 
of  a  reading-party  at  Bowness  in  1827,  and  is  chiefly 
valuable  for  its  occasional  notices  of  the  Rydal 
household.  So  much  of  it  was,  however,  embodied 
by  its  author  in  his  Memoir  of  William  Wordsworth 
that  it  need  not  be  reproduced  here.  It  is  easy, 
however,  to  see  how  much  of  the  real  education  of 
the  young  and  successful  Trinity  prizeman  was 
carried  on  by  the  shores  of  Windermere,  and  among 
the  green  slopes  of  Loughrigg  and  Nab  Scar ;  and  it 
is  impossible  to  over-estimate  the  gain  for  such  a 
mind  at  so  critical  a  period  of  its  development  of 
coming  under  the  Influence  of  one  "  not  of  an  age 
but  for  all  time,"  who,  though  a  fastidious  and  even 
severe  critic  of  himself  and  others,  yet  soared  high 
above,  and  dived  far  below,  the  mere  technicalities 
of  literary  art.  The  grand,  broad,  simple  way  of 
looking  at  life  which,  to  the  last,  characterized  the 
subject  of  this  memoir,  was  no  faint  reflection  of  the 
character  of  the  author  of  the  "  Excursion." 


1830.]     INFLUENCE  OF  THE  RYDAL  HOUSEHOLD.       59 

It  was  a  happy  thing  also  for  Christopher  Words- 
worth that  at  Rydal  he  came  into  the  society  of  the 
poet's  wife,  sister,  and  daughter,  all  of  whom  felt  a 
warm  affection  for  him,  and  brought  an  element  into 
his  life  of  womanly  tenderness.  His  cousin  Dora 
especially,  as  many  bright  and  playful  letters  show, 
was  almost  like  an  elder  sister  to  him,  and  through- 
out the  correspondence  there  is  something  very 
piquant  in  the  contrast  between  her  liveliness  and 
the  unbroken  seriousness  of  "  Daddy,"  as  she  called 
the  good  old  poet,  who  hung  upon  her  with  all  a 
father's  love  for  an  only  daughter. 

One  or  two  specimens  of  the  letters  from  the 
Rydal  household  will  illustrate  this. 

The  following,  from  Dorothy  Wordsworth,  has 
no  date.  It  is  written  in  the  tremulous  hand  of  a 
confirmed  invalid,  and  evidently  refers  to  a  present 
from  her  Cam.bridge  nephews  : — 

My  good  and  dear  Nephews, — You  -.vould  be  more 
than  recompensed  for  the  sacrifice  from  your  apartment  in 
Trinity  Collegeto  my  quiet  prison-house,  of  the  pictureof  the 
Virgin  and  her  two  lovely  babes,  if  you  could  form  a  notion 
of  the  deep  delight  I  have  in  looking  upon  the  placid  figure 
of  the  mother,  and  the  infantine  grace  of  the  children.  My 
first  feeling  when  the  box  was  opened  was  chiefly  of  gratitude 
to  you,and  a  touch,!  hope,  of  innocent  pride  in  the  possession 
ofthe  love  and  thoughtful  friendship  of  so  many  nephews,  all 
removed  far  from  me.  The  picture  itself  pleased  me  much, 
but  compared  with  the  feeling  which  I  now  always  have  in 
looking  on  your  precious  gift,  it  vvas  nothing.  My  admira- 
tion grows   daily.     It   hangs  opposite  to  the  bottom    of 


6o      EARLY  MANHOOD  AND  EARLY  TRAVELS.    [1830— 

my  bed,  and  when  all  the  family  are  gone  to  rest,  is  my 
soothing  companion,  when  lighted  up  by  the  temperate 
blaze  of  the  fire,  and  my  pleasure  increases  the  more  it  is 
indulged.  But  I  must  cut  short.  Though  I  write  lying 
on  my  back,  it  wearies  me,  so  in  a  few  words  I  will  entreat 
you,  if  possible,  to  come  to  Rydal  this  summer.  ...  It 
would  be  a  great  happiness  to  me  to  see  you  once  again. 

I  trust  our  poor  Dora  is  really  improved,  and  that  she 
may  be  strong  enough  to  bear  the  journey  to  her  kind  and 
best  of  friends,  Mrs.  and  Miss  Hoare.  Isabella  will  write 
the  letter,  for  mine  deserves  not  the  name,  and  will  tell 
you  about  us,  but  never  can  she  tell  you  what  delight  I 
should  have  in  seeing  your  dear  father  and  all  of  you. 
Your  uncle  admonishes  me  to  write  no  more,  so  farewell, 
and  may  God  help  and  prosper  you  through  life. 

Your  loving  aunt, 

Dorothy  Wordsworth. 

The  following  from  Dorothy  Wordsworth  to  her 
brother,  the  Master  of  Trinity,  is  dated  Rydal 
Mount,  April  27th,  1830.  After  pressing  him  to 
pay  them  a  summer  visit,  she  continues  : — 

My  first  wish  is  that  your  dear  son  John  may  be  elected 
Fellow  of  Trinity  . . .  my  next  that  Chris  may  also  be  elected, 
and  thus  spared  the  going  through  so  much  as  has  fallen 
to  his  brother's  lot.  You  do  not  mention  Charles'  prospects. 
John  told  me  he  was  not  very  hopeful  of  reaching  the 
First  Class,'  but  I  do  expect  to  see  his  name  there,  and 
shall  be  anxious  for  the  Oxford  paper.  .  .  .  Whatever  be  his 
place,  I  shall  have  no  misgivings,  no  doubts  about  his  well- 
doing, .  .  .  Give  my  kind  love  to  John  and  Chris,  and  a 
thousand  good  wishes  for  a  happy  end  of  their  labours  .  .  . 

'  All  Uicse  hopes  were  fulfilled.  Charles  W.  came  out  First 
Class  (Lit.  Hum.)  in  the  same  year,  1830,  that  his  brothers 
obtained  Trinity  l''cllowships. 


—  1836.]  FIRST  VISIT  TO  PARIS.  61 

and  the  like  to  Charles  when  he  is  written  to,  and  believe, 
me,  my  dear  brother, 

Your  ever  affectionate  sister, 

D.  Wordsworth. 

Her  brother  adds  on  the  same  page : — 

My  dear  Bro., — With  Mr.  Burke's  colleagues  at 
Bristol,  I  say  ditto  to  all  that  she  has  so  ably  expressed 
upon  your  coming  hither.  Mary  says  ditto  also.  Is  it 
politic  for  the  two  brothers  to  contend  at  the  same  time  .-' 
but  you  know  best.  Owen  [Lloyd]  means  to  take  his 
Master's  degree  next  Commencement,  &c. 

This  period  in  Christopher  Wordsworth's  history 
was  also  important  as  awakening  in  his  mind  the 
first  beginnings  of  what  was  to  be  so  characteristic 
of  his  future  life,  a  keen  Interest  in  the  Roman  con- 
troversy. In  a  journal  kept  by  him  while  on  a  first 
visit  to  Paris  {2>?>^  ^\i&  d'Artois),  and  probably  about 
the  year  1828,  we  find,  after  the  usual  remarks  about 
the  ordinary  sights  of  Paris,  from  the  king  and  the 
Duchesse  d'Angouleme  to  the  chiffoniers,  ''  with  a 
basket  on  their  back  and  a  sort  of  IxOv/Soko^  jxr^yavrj 
in  their  hand,  with  which  they  spike  every  scrap, 
be  it  what  it  may,  and  waft  it  over  their  shoulder 
into  the  basket," — the  following  thoughtful  sen- 
tences : — 

The  Catholic  Church  here  is  in  its  dotage  :  it  is  worn 
out.  The  priests  are  hated,  the  churches  are  deserted.  A 
change  must  soon  take  place.  The  king  supports  the 
clergy,  but  his  support  is  not  worth  having.  It  seems  pro- 
bable that  the  nation  will  first  become  a  nation  of  free- 
thinkers— will  become  ?  it  is  so  already — and  then,  it  is  to 


62     EARLY  MANHOOD  AND  EARLY  TRAVELS.     [1830— 

be  hoped,  we  may  look  for  better  things.  Indeed,  if  France 
were  a  moral  and  religious  nation,  it  would  be  the  happiest 
in  the  world.  What  a  climate  it  possesses  !  For  this  last 
week  we  have  not  had  a  cloud.  But  then  we  must  also 
abolish  the  thousand  cafes  and  restaurants  .  .  .  these  esta- 
lishments  are  guilty  of  all  the  domestic  infelicities  of  Paris. 
.  .  .  There  is  more  appearance  of  happiness  in  France 
than  reality.  They  have  their  griefs,  but  they  try  to  con- 
ceal them.  They  suffer  a  good  deal,  but  they  never  use 
the  passive  voice. 

The  following  letter  from  the  poet  was  written  on  ■ 

the  occasion  of  this  visit  : — 

Rydal  Mount,  November  27th  [1828]. 
My  dear  Nephew, — It  gave  me  much  pleasure  to 
learn  that  your  residence  in  France  had  answered  so  well. 
As  I  had  recommended  the  step,  I  felt  more  especially 
anxious  to  be  informed  of  the  result.  I  have  only  to  regret 
that  you  do  not  tell  me  whether  the  interests  of  a  foreign 
country  and  a  brilliant  metropolis  had  encroached  more 
upon  the  time  due  to  your  academic  studies  than  was 
proper.  I  ought  to  have  asked  this  question  through  your 
father.  There  is  little  or  no  religion  among  the  male 
portion  of  the  French  people,  except  a  few  old  men  and 
certain  priests  who,  I  doubt  not,  are  sincere.  You  are 
therefore  probably  not  mistaken  in  imputing  to  that  want 
most  of  the  vices  and  defects  of  the  French  character.  As 
to  the  Revolution  which  Mr.  Digby  calculates  upon,  I  agree 
with  him  that  a  great  change  must  take  place,  but  not  alto- 
gether, or  even  mainly,  from  the  cause  which  he  looks  to, 
if  I  be  right  in  conjecturing  that  he  expects  that  the  Reli- 
gionists, who  have  at  present  such  influence  over  the  king's 
mind,  will  be  predominant.  The  French  Monarchy  must 
undergo  a  great  change,  or  it  \\\\\  fall  altogether.  A  con- 
stitution of  government  so  disproportioncd  cannot  endure. 


-1836.]  LETTERS  FROM  WILLIAM  WORDSWORTH.     63 


A  monarchy   without  a  powerful   aristocracy  or  nobiHty 
graduating  into  a  gentry,  and  so  downwards,  cannot  long 
subsist.     This  is  wanting  in  France,  and  must  continue  to 
be  wanting  till  the  restrictions  imposed  upon  the  disposal 
of  property  by  will  through  the  Code  Napoleon  are  done 
away  with  ;  and  it  may  be  observed,  by-the-bye,  that  there 
is  a  bareness — some  would  call  it  a  simplicity — in  that  code 
which  unfits  it  for  a  complex  state  of  society  like  that  of 
France,  so  that  evasions  and  stretchings  of  its  provisions 
are  already  found  necessary  to  a  degree,  which  will  ere  long 
convince  the  French  people  of  the  necessity  of  disencum- 
bering themselves  of  it.     But  to  return  :  my  apprehension 
is,  that  for  the  cause  assigned,  the  French  monarchy  may 
fall,  before  an  aristocracy  can  be  raised  to  give  it  necessary 
support.     The  great  monarchies  of  Russia,  Prussia,  and 
Austria,  having  not  yet  been  subject  to  popular  revolution, 
are  still  able  to  maintain  themselves  through  the  old  feudal 
forms  and  qualities,  with  something — not   much — of  the 
feudal  virtues.    This  cannot  be  in  France  :  popular  inclina- 
tions are  much  too  strong — thanks,  I  will  say  so  far,  to  her 
Revolution.     How  is  a  government  fit  for  her  condition  to 
be   supported,  but  by  religion  and  a  spirit  of  honour,  or 
refined  conscience  .-*     Now  religion  in  a  widely  extended 
country  plentifully  peopled  cannot  be  preserved  from  abuse 
of  priestly  influence  and  from  superstition  and  fanaticism, 
nor  honour  be  an  operating  principle  upon  a  large  scale 
except  Xhxow^  property — that  is,  such  accumulations  of  it, 
graduated,  as  I  have  mentioned  above,  through  the  commu- 
nity.    Thus,  and  thus  only,  can  be  had^  exemption  from 
temptation  to  low  habits  of  mind,  leisure  for  solid  education, 
and  dislike  to  innovation,  from  a  sense  in  the  several  classes, 
how  much  they  have  to  lose  ;  for  circumstances  often  make 
men  wise,  or  at  least  discreet,  when  their  individual  levity  or 
presumption  would    dispose  them  to  be  much  otherwise. 
To  what  extent  that  constitution  of  character  which  is  pro- 
duced by  property  makes  up  for  the  decay  of  chivalrous 


64     EARLY  MANHOOD  AND  EARLY  TRAVELS.     [1830— 

loyalty  and  strengthens  government,  may  be  seen  by  com- 
paring the  officers  of  the  English  army  with  those  of 
Prussia,  &c.  How  far  superior  are  ours  as  gentlemen  !  So 
much  so,  that  British  officers  can  scarcely  associate  with 
those  of  the  continent — not  from  pride,  but  instinctive 
aversion  to  their  low  propensities. 

But  I  cannot  proceed,  and  ought,  my  dear  Chris,  to  crave 
your  indulgence  for  so  long  a  prose. 

As  v^e  are  touching  upon  the  relations  which  sub- 
sisted between  the  subject  of  this  memoir  and  his 
Rydal  kinsfolk,  it  will  be  well  to  anticipate  dates,  and 
insert  some  later  letters  in  this  place  : — 

12,  Bryanston  Street,  Portinan  Square, 
[Postmark,  J/«j/  14,  1828.] 
My  dear  Cousin, — Last  night  Lady  Davy  took  myself 
and  father  to  the  opera,  where  I  saw  and  heard  Madame 
Sontag.  You  will  smile  at  your  country  cousin's  bold 
critique,  but  bear  in  mind  that  it  is  done  at  your  own 
request — with  a  wish  to  give  pleasure  ;  and  will  at  any  rate 
be  a  proof  that  my  thoughts  arc  with  you  in  this  bustling 
wildernes.s,  and  that  I  am  ready  to  seize  the  first  oppor- 
tunity of  flying  back  to  Cambridge,  where  I  spent  such  a 
sunny  month  (I  mean  heart  sunshine),  and  deeply  do  I  feel 
all  the  affectionate  and  affecting  kindness  shown  me  by 
yourself  and  dear  John.  Now  to  my  story.  Madame 
SontafT  is  a  delicious  nightingale!  her  flexibility  of  voice 
perfectly  amazing — exceedingly  sweet,  though  not  heart- 
stirring  :  of  this  father  complains  much.  Her  figure  is 
light  and  pretty,  hand  and  arm  exquisite,  foot  pretty,  but 
no  pretensions  to  beauty  of  physiognomy — at  least,  at  the 
distance  I  saw  her.  Her  manner  is  winning  and  agreeable, 
and  her  voice  and  singing  "  in  perfect  unison  with  the 
scene  "  (of  figure,  &c.)  ;  and  it  appears  to  me  that  the  world 
is  tolerably  justified  in  bestowing  on  her  its  praises.     To- 


—  1836]      LETTER  FROM  DORA    WORDSWORTH.  65 

night  we  all  go  to  Drury  Lane  ;  Mr.  Reynolds,  the  Keep- 
sake Friendj  sent  us  four  tickets,  and  we  are  to  meet  him 
there.  This  is  a  tidy  man.  I  have  been  to  the  Diorama, 
but  as  yet  nothing  else  in  the  sight-seeing  way.  Of  friends, 
the  most  interesting,  Sir  Walter  Scott,  Rogers,  Mr.  Kenyon, 
and  others  too  numerous  to  name.  Mr.  Ouillinan  has  taken 
my  mother  to  call  upon  Mrs.  Hoare.  Father  at  breakfast 
with  Crabbe  Robinson  in  the  Temple,  and  I  alone  at  home 
to  receive  all  their  visitors.  Father  dines  with  ]\Ir.  Joshua 
Watson  on  Friday.  I  wonder  how  dear  uncle  is.  I  want 
to  see  him,  but  shall  be  "  fearfully  shamed,"  for  I  have  got 
such  a  hat  !  and  had  a  Frenchman  last  night  to  dress  my 
hair  for  the  opera,  who  cut  off  all  my  dangling  curls,  and 
made  my  head  precisely  like  the  ladies  you  see  in  their 
windows.  Breakfast,  dinner,  and  evening  engagements  are 
overwhelming  us  ;  truly,  I  am  sighing  for  Rydal  rest.  I 
know  not  how  many  lords  and   fine  folk  were  in  the  box 

last  night,  and  the  grandest  of  all  our  sweet  cousin , 

who  really  did  me  the  honour  of  twice  shaking  me  by  the 
hand.  I  saw  numbers  of  pretty  women,  but  no  man  as 
handsome  as  my  Cambridge  lover.  But  how  did  the  bump- 
ing go  on  last  night?  St.  John's  still  triumphant?  You 
must  be  sure  to  tell  us  how  it  goes  on.  Father  means  to 
call  upon  his  bookseller  this  morning.  Lcckhart  break- 
fasted here  with  Sir  Walter  ;  I  like  him  better  than  I  did. 
GillieSj  too,  we  have  seen.  Had  a  letter  from  Rydal,  but 
no  particular  news.  I  have  had  one  great  disappointment : 
Miss  Cookson  gone  back  to  Kendal.  I  went  to  the  door 
in  full  confidence  of  seeing  her,  and  anticipating  much 
pleasure  from  the  pleasure  I  knew  the  fresh  contributors  to 
her  album  would  give,  that  my  disappointment  was  almost 
overpowering.     Here  comes  Miss  Douglas,  and  no  father. 

What Father  just  come  in.     I  can  write  no  more. 

Kindest  love  to  John. 

Your  very  affectionate, 

Dora  Wordsworth. 


66     EARLY  MANHOOD  AND  EARLY  TRAVELS.     [1830— 

Robert  Southey  died  in  March,  1843.  ^^^  f*^^" 
lowino:  letter  from  William  Wordsworth  refers  to  an 
inscription  written  for  his  monument : — 

January  16,  1844. 
My  dear  CHras, — It  is  creditable  to  Mr.  Southey,  and 
perhaps  in  some  small  degree  to  myself,  that  the  Inscription 
has  given  birth  to  so  much  minute  criticism,  and  I  thank 
you  for  taking  the  pains  with  it  you  have  done.  I  question 
whether  there  is  a  couplet  in  the  whole  that  has  not  been 
objected  to  by  some  one  or  another,  and  in  a  way  that 
would  surprise  you  as  much,  were  I  to  report  the  instances, 

as  your  remarks  did  me — all  but  the  first As  to 

the  four  concluding  lines,  what  you  dwell  upon  as  a  defect 
I  deem  exactly  the  contrary  ;  and  it  may  be  as  well  to  say 
— as  you  appeal  to  authorities — that  four  intelligent  per- 
sons who  were  present  when  your  remarks  were  read,  were 
of  my  opinion.  I  have  no  notion  of  an  "  ordinary  Chris- 
tian." A  man  is  a  believer  with  a  life  conformable  to  his 
belief;  and  if  so,  all  peculiarities  of  genius,  talent,  and  per- 
sonal character  vanish  before  the  sublime  position  which  he 
occupies  with  all  brother-Christians,  children  of  one  Father, 
and  saved  by  the  one  Redeemer.  I  had  sufficiently  raised 
the  subject  of  the  Inscription  above  ordinary  men  by  the 
first  sixteen  lines,  and  this  being  done,  all  individual  dis- 
tinctions are  in  the  conclusion  merged,  as  they  ought  to  be, 
in  a  condition  compared  with  which  everything  else  sinks 
into  insignificance.  [Then,  after  entering  into  details]  I 
thank  you,  dear  Chris,  for  having  expressed  your  objection. 
Nothing  seems  to  be  lost  by  the  alteration. 

November,  1844. 

My  dear  Nephew, — Heartily  do  we  all  rejoice  in  the 

event  of  which  we  had  before  heard  from  your  father.    We 

are  glad  especially  on  account  of  your  health,  that  you  are 

leaving  Harrow;    and    this    new  situation  seems  exactly 


—  1836.]   LETTERS  FROM  WILLIAM  WORDSWORTH      67 

fitted  for  you,  provided  you  can  unite  with  it  some  paro- 
chial work  which  may  not  be  too  much  for  your  strength. 
A  residence  in  London  will  enable  you  to  serve  the  Church 
in  many  ways  through  her  various  societies,  and  bring  you 
near  to  her  several  heads,  for  her  benefit,  as  I  cannot  but 
confidently  hope. 

1845. 

My  dear  Christopher, — I  have  not  yet  heard  of  your 
books  sent  to  Ambleside,  but  I  shall  inquire  after  them 
immediately.  One  copy  I  have  myself,  and  have  read  with 
very  great  interest  and  much  instruction  ;  so  that  I  wish  it 
sent  to  every  person  of  station  or  consideration  in  the 
country,  &c. 

Pray  when  do  you  think  of  going  into  Italy  ?  You 
cannot  be  an  acceptable  visitor  to  the  authorities  of  Rome  ; 
you  may  be  pretty  sure  that  they  are  not  ignorant  of  the 
character  and  tendency  of  your  writings,  and  I  should  not 
at  all  wonder  if  you  were  to  receive  a  hint  that  you  would 
do  well  to  quit  the  country.  But  I  may  be  in  error  on  this 
point,  and  you  are  likely  to  know  much  better  than  I  how 
things  would  stand  with  you. 

[No  date.] 
My  dear  Nephew, —  ....  Moxon  wishes  to  put  to 
press  immediately  a  new  edition  of  "The  Excursion,"  and 
to  request,  knowing  how  much  more  accurate  you  are  than 
I  could  be,  were  my  eyes  as  good  as  they  ever  were,  that  if 
your  health  and  leisure  allow,  you  would  be  so  kind  as  to 
correct  this  edition  in  its  progress  through  the  press. 

[Postmark  1845.] 

My   dear  Christopher, — I  had  your  two 

first  pamphlets  read  to  me,  and  immediately  put  them  into 
circulation  among  my  friends  in  this  neighbourhood,  but 
wishing  to  read  them  myself,  I  did  not  like  to  write  to  you 
till  I  had   done  so,  as  there  were  one  or  two  passages  on 

F   2 


68      EARLY  MANHOOD  AND  EARLY  TRAVELS.   [1830— 

which  I  wished  to  make  a  remark.  I  have,  however,  not 
yet  had  an  opportunity  of  doing  so,  and  therefore  must 
content  myself  with  saying  that  the  passages  referred  to  con- 
tain some  expressions  upon  Romanism  which  I  thought  too 
harsh  and  severe.  My  abhorrence  of  the  system  is  as  great 
as  yours  can  possibly  be,  but  still  in  controversial  writing 
our  language   ought  to  be  more  guarded  than  I  thought 

yours  in  the  words  to  which  I  refer As  to  your 

arguments,  they  are  unanswerable,  and  the  three  tracts  do 
you  the  greatest  possible  credit. 

[Then  he  enters  at  great  length  into  the  whole  subject.] 

We  must  now  return  to  Cambridge,  and  to  a 
period  in  Christopher  Wordsworth's  history,  where 
the  materials  for  biography  are  somewhat  scant. 
Especially  is  this  the  case  as  regards  the  growth  of 
his  inner  life.  A  chance  expression  here  and  there 
in  letter  or  journal  sufficiently  indicates  that  beneath 
all  the  blaze  and  crackle  of  University  excitement 
there  was  a  steadily  deepening  glow  of  earnest 
piety.  But  it  was  not  the  habit  of  his  mind,  nor 
that  of  the  circle  in  which  he  moved,  to  be  prodigal 
in  the  expression  of  religious  emotion.  In  a  house- 
hold composed  entirely  of  men  there  was  a  healthy 
interest  about  concrete  realities  which  left  little — 
perhaps  too  little — room  for  the  subjective  side  of 
life.  There  was  the  proverbial  Englishman's  re- 
serve on  religious  matters.  And  it  may  not  be 
untrue  to  say,  that,  where  intellectual  interests  are 
strong,  and  there  is  great  enjoyment  in  the  use  of 
one's  mental  and  bodily  faculties,  the  apparent  reli- 
gious development  is  slower  than  in  cases  where — 
there  being  less  to  mature — maturity  is  sooner  reached. 


—1836.]  RELIGION  IN  CAMBRIDGE  IN  1830.  69 

A  visit  to  Ireland  about  the  year  1831  has  been 
commemorated  by  C.  Wordsworth  in  a  speech  at 
the  Derby  Church  Congress,  as  the  period  when 
"  Milner'sEnd  of  Controversy  "  was  first  put  into  his 
hands,  and  for  some  time  it  seriously  staggered  him  in 
his  religious  opinions.  How  he  recovered  his  equi- 
librium he  himself  has  told  us.  But  a  few  remarks 
about  the  state  of  religious  feeling  in  1830,  espe- 
cially at  Cambridge,  may  not  be  inappropriate  here. 

As  may  be  seen  by  the  journal  already  quoted, 
Cambridge  had  rarely  been  without  a  tradition  of 
steady,  if  somewhat  undemonstrative  piety.  The 
name  of  Charles  Simeon  (Vicar  of  Holy  Trinity, 
1783 — 1839)  speaks  volumes  in  itself,  but  the  school 
which  influenced  the  future  Bishop  of  Lincoln  was 
naturally  that  to  which  his  father  belonged,  the 
school  of  Bishop  Horsley,  H.  J.  Rose,  Professor 
J.  J.  Blunt,  Le  Bas,  and  W.  H.  Mill,  who  with 
others  like-minded  kept  alive  that  sober  Church  of 
England  spirit  in  the  University  which  in  an  earlier 
generation  had  been  associated  with  the  names  of 
Bishop  Home,  Jones  of  Nayland,  and  William 
Stevens,  whose  modest  spirit  of  self-effacement 
still  survives  in  the  well-known  club  of  "  Nobody's 
Friends."  It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  such  a 
man  as  the  Master  of  Trinity,  who  had  deeply 
studied  the  Church  in  her  historic  aspects,  and  with 
a  certain  judicial  calm  and  firmness  of  mind  in  which 
his  love  of  truth  displayed  itsel^  much  as  his  brother's 
did  in  the  conscientious  observation  of  nature,  must 


70       EARLY  MANHOOD  AND  EARLY  TRA  VELS.  [1S3C 


have  been  of  immense  value  to  the  rising  genera- 
tion in  Cambridge.  How  high  his  own  standard 
was  even  in  youth  may  be  seen  by  a  reference  to  his 
early  letters.  But  with  him  as  with  the  author  of 
the  "Christian  Year"  (a  work  which  he  held  in 
high  admiration)  there  was  a  dutifulness  of  spirit,  a 
strong  sense  of  family  religion,  which  is  the  best 
possible  preparation  for  the  highest  kinds  of  church- 
manship.  This  good  old  English  quality  which  has 
again  and  again  proved  the  safeguard  of  our  Church, 
was  no  less  noticeable  in  his  sons. 

This  may  not  be  an  unsuitable  place  for  referring 
to  a  few  words  which  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln  spoke 
very  shortly  before  his  death  in  answer  to  questions 
put  to  him  : — 

"  I  was  confirmed  at  Buxted,  but  it  made  no  impression. 
Yes,  my  father  prepared  me,  or  at  least  put  books  into  my 
hand.     I  suppose  he  thought  I  could  prepare  myself." 

"  What  was  it  that  gave  you  a  good  influence  ?  Was  it 
your  friends  at  college  }      Uncle  John  Frere  ?  " 

"  Yes,  he  was  quite  a  saint ;  but  my  father's  sermons  and 
my  father's  friends  were  all  very  good.  Joshua  Watson,  Le 
Bas,  Archdeacon  Evans,"  and  the  University  sermons  were 
all  very  good  in  those  days,  and  the  College  Chapel.  I  used 
to  read  Barrow  every  morning  before  breakfast.  I  had 
made  up  my  mind  to  be  a  parson,  thinking  that  the  life  in 
which  one  could  do  the  greatest  good  in  the  world.  One 
of  my  father's  favourite  texts  was  '  Ikiy  the  truth,  and  sell 

^  Author  of  "Bishopric  of  Souls,"  "Rectory  of  Valehead,"  and 
other  works  ;  a  Fellow  of  Trinity,  and  afterwards  the  well-known 
Vicar  of  Hevcrsham. 


—1836.]  BENEFICENT  INFLUENCES  ON  HIS  LIFE.        71 

it  not.'     I  never  knew  any  one  of  such  inflexible  integrity 
in  doing  his  duty  in  the  face  of  great  difficulties." 

"The  three  most  magnanimous  men  I  ever  knew 
in  my  life,"  said  Dean  Blakesley,  shortly  before  his 
own  decease,  to  one  of  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln's  chil- 
dren, "were  your  father,  your  grandfather,  and  your 
great-uncle  "  (the  poet). 

Another  beneficent  influence  in  his  life  was  that 
of  Dr.  Walton,  before  mentioned  as  Rector  of  Bird- 
brook,  his  father's  college  friend  and  his  own  god- 
father, a  typical  country  clergyman  of  the  good  old 
school,  who  added  to  his  sincere  piety  a  bright, 
genial,  generous,  and  even  playful  disposition,  and 
whose  letters  to  and  about  his  godson,  as  well  as 
those  of  Mrs.  Walton,  are  full  of  keen  and  intelligent 
interest  in  his  progress  both  at  school  and  college. 
That  interest  never  relaxed  ;  and  to  the  close  of  the 
Bishop's  life  a  little  sketch  of  Birdbrook  Church 
was  always  preserved  hanging  up  in  his  dressing- 
room.     On  the  back  of  it  is,  written  by  himself, — 

"  Birdbrook  Church,  Essex,  where  my  dear  godfather 
Rev.  Jonathan  Walton,  was  rector  ;  by  my  dear  mother, 
Priscilla  Wordsworth." 

The  name  of  Joshua  Watson  will  speak  for  itself 
to  the  elder  generation  of  our  readers,  associated  as 
it  is  with  nearly  every  department  of  Church  work 
in  the  early  part  of  this  century.  He  was  one  of 
the  dearest  friends  of  the  Master  of  Trinity,  as  were 
also  Henry  Handley  Norris,  of  Hackney,  and  many 


72       EARLY  MANHOOD  AND  EARLY  TRAVELS.  [1830— 

Other  members  of  the   circle   to  which  the  club  of 
"  Nobody's  Friends,"  already  alluded  to,  formed  a 
kind  of  rallying-point.     And  any  life  of  the  Bishop  of 
Lincoln   would  be   incomplete  without  a  mention  of 
the  names  of  Mrs.  and  Miss  Hoare,  whose  house  at 
Hampstead  was   a  second  home   to  the   Master  of 
Trinity,  his  children  and  children's  children.     Even 
the  severities  of  Winchester  school-life  were   miti- 
gated by  Mrs.  Hoare's  affectionate  care  for  the  three 
motherless  boys,  and  in  later  life  all  the  graces  and 
refinements  with  which  well-informed  and  cultivated 
women  surround  themselves  were  to  be  met  with  in 
perfection  at  Hampstead,  which  was  in  those  days  a 
favourite   rendezvous  for  literary  men.      Here   not 
unfrequently    the    poet    Wordsworth    took   up    his 
quarters  when  visiting  London,  and,  as  we  have  seen, 
Crabbe,  Joanna  Baillie,  and  others  were  not  unfre- 
quently to  be  found. 

Mrs.  Hoare's  house  was  much  frequented  by 
members  of  the  Society  of  Friends,  to  which  her 
husband  belonged,  though  she  herself  did  not,  and 
Miss  Hoare,  like  many  others  once  of  that  Society, 
was  an  accomplished  artist. 

At  Hampstead  also  lived  the  George  Freres.  The 
eldest  son,  John,  was  a  Trinity  friend  of  Christopher 
Wordsworth,  as  has  already  been  stated,  and  his 
future  brother-in-law.  He  was  indeed  "  a  saint." 
Coleridge  had  said,  "  In  such  goodness  as  that  both 
Mr.  [Hookham]  Frere  and  his  brother  George  live, 
move,  and  have  their  being  in,  there  is  genius."    And 


—1836.]  EARLY  FRIENDS.  77, 

this  was  especially  true  of  John.  Everything  about 
him  was  thoughtful,  tender,  and  refined.  He  had  all 
the  instincts  of  a  gentleman,  a  scholar,  and  a  Chris- 
tian. Serious  and  earnest,  he  was  not  without  a  lighter 
and  more  playful  side  to  his  character.  His  standard 
of  life  as  a  parish  priest  was  singularly  high  ;  and 
his  early  death  (in  1851)  was  perhaps  the  greatest 
sorrow  of  his  brother-in-law's  life  till  within  the  last 
few  months  before  its  close. 

The  name  of  Merivale  also  suggests  a  family 
alliance.  The  present  Dean  of  Ely  married  Mr.  G. 
Frere's  youngest  daughter.  Judith.  As  he  is  happily 
still  living,  it  would  be  presumptuous  to  add  any- 
thing to  the  mention  of  one  so  honoured  and  so 
beloved. 

The  name  of  Francis  Martin,  Fellow  and  Bursar 
of  Trinity  College,  if  less  known  to  fame,  is  warmly 
and  affectionately  remembered  as  that  of  one  of  the 
oldest  and  most  faithful  of  family  friends.  Cam- 
bridge men  will  not  lightly  part  with  the  memory  of 
one  so  full  of  kindliness  and  generosity.  He  was 
godfather  to  his  old  friend's  eldest  son,  the  present 
Bishop  of  Salisbury,  and  his  almost  paternal  affec- 
tion for  Dr.  Benson,  the  present  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury,  will  give  him  a  claim  of  no  common 
kind  on  public  as  well  as  private  gratitude. 

This  list  would  not  be  complete  without  the 
mention  of  Joseph  William  Blakesley,  Christopher 
Wordsworth's  contemporary  at  Cambridge,  and  who 
afterwards  as  Dean  of  Lincoln,  during  the  latter  part 


74       EARLY  MANHOOD  AND  EARLY  TRAVELS.  [1830— 

of  the  episcopate  of  the  late  Bishop,  was  full  of  kind 
offices  towards  him,  and  whose  last  appearance  in 
Lincoln  Cathedral  was  at  his  old  friend's  funeral,  so 
soon,  alas  !  to  be  followed  by  his  own. 

And  we  may  sum  up  with  the  venerated  name  of 
Selwyn,  a  name  that  needs  no  comment.  George 
Augustus  Selwyn  and  Christopher  Wordsworth 
were  married  in  the  same  year,  Mrs.  Selwyn  and 
Mrs.  Wordsworth  having  previously  been  on  such 
sisterly  terms  that  the  former  was  sometimes 
spoken  of  as  "the  dark  Miss  Frere."  And  when 
Bishop  Selwyn,  after  years  of  unparalleled  mis- 
sionary exertion,  returned  to  England,  there  was  no 
house  where  he  received  a  warmer  welcome  than  the 
Cloisters  at  Westminster,  or  the  Palace  at  Rise- 
holme.  The  two  Bishops,  who  had  much  in  common, 
had  a  deep  regard  and  affection  for  one  another, 
and,  if  we  may  anticipate  so  far,  there  were  perhaps 
none  on  the  whole  episcopal  bench  between  whom 
in  later  days  the  title  of  brother  could  be  so  warmly 
and  heartily  interchanged. 

We  have  seen  that  Christopher  W^ordsworth  be- 
came a  Fellow  of  Trinity,  Cambridge,  in  1830,  and 
shortly  afterwards  an  assistant  tutor.  Few  records 
have  come  down  to  us  of  this  period,  but  from  vari- 
ous indications  wc  may  gather  that  he  was  not  only 
an  admirable  teacher,  as  far  as  scholarship  was  con- 
cerned, but  that  he  took  a  keen  personal  interest  in 
his  pupils.  One  of  these.  Lord  Charles  Hervey, 
remained   to   the  very  close  of  his  life  among  the 


— 1S36.]  TRAVELS  IN  SICILY,  GREECE,  &-c.  75 

Bishop's  dearest  friends  and  fellow-workers,  especially 
in  Anglo-Continental  Society  matters. 

In  the  year  1832,  in  company  with  another  Fellow 
of  Trinity,  Mr.  Joddrell,  who  afterwards  added  the 
name  of  Phillips,  he  travelled  in  Sicily  and  Southern 
Italy.  That  this  must  have  been  a  peculiarly  de- 
lightful time  in  his  life  we  may  gather  from  the 
pleasure  with  which  he  never  failed  to  refer  to  it.  The 
image  of  those  grand  and  lonely  temples  at  Pajstum 
seemed  to  haunt  his  memory  ever  after,  and  the 
charm  which  Theocritus  had  for  him  was  doubtless 
in  no  small  degree  due  to  the  background  of  exqui- 
site landscape  in  which  those  quaint  fishermen  and 
shepherds  lived  and  moved,  and  where  Pan  himself 
seemed  rather  asleep  than  dead. 

The  winter  of  1832-3  was  passed  in  the  Ionian 
Islands  and  Greece.  C.  Wordsworth  was  the  first 
Englishman  presented  to  King  Otho.  After  spend- 
ing Christmas  at  Athens,  the  travellers  visited 
Delphi  and  other  remarkable  places.  The  weather 
w^as  intensely  cold. 

"The  overflowings  of  the  Asopus,  in  the  plain  ofPlataese, 
were  covered  with  ice,  as  at  the  time  of  the  siege  described 
by  Thucydides.  On  our  way  back  from  Delphi  the  cold 
was  severe  ;  it  was  like  one  of  Hesiod's  Boeotian  winters. 
On  Mount  Parnassus  we  were  detained  by  a  snowstorm. 
The  snow  was  drifting  with  incessant  violence  as  we  passed 
the  Triodos  (where  QEdipus  encountered  his  father)  in  our 
way  to  the  city  of  Daulis.  .  .  .  The  cold  was  too  intense  to 
allow  of  standing  still  to  make  a  transcript  of  some  ancient 
inscriptions  which  are  to  be  seen  in  a   ruined  church  on  its 


76       EARLY  MANHOOD  AND  EARLY  TRA  VELS.  [1830— 

summit.     We  entered  Thebes  in  a  snowstorm,  which  kept 
us  there  for  a  week." 

The  pass  of  Phyle  was  blocked  up  by  snow,  and 
the  travellers  therefore  had  to  take  a  circuitous 
route.  In  passing  the  heights  of  Mount  Parnes,  a 
few  miles  north-east  of  Deceleia,  they  were  waylaid 
and  attacked  by  two  detachments  of  brigands, — 

"  One  of  whom,  more  fierce  than  the  others,  stabbed  me, 
when  on  the  ground,  with  a  stiletto  on  the  left  shoulder,  ex- 
claiming Ke2vo<i  e'x^i,  ra  ypoa-ata  [lie  Jias got  the  mone)i).  Pro- 
videntially for  us,  a  deep  snow  lay  on  the  ground,  and  the 
brigands  were  not  able  to  take  us  to  the  hills  and  to  keep 
us  in  captivity  till  they  had  obtained  a  ransom  for  our 
release,  in  which  case  we  might  perhaps  have  suffered  the 
same  fate  as  that  by  which  Mr.  F.  G.  Vyner  and  his  com- 
panions perished  in  1870,  not  far  from  the  same  spot. 
Having  despoiled  us  of  such  valuables  as  we  had — they 
did  not  care  to  take  my  journal  and  few  books,  which  they 
flung  on  the  ground — they  allowed  us  to  proceed  on  our 
way  to  Athens." 

This  was  in  the  month  of  January. 

Of  his  travels  in  Greece  it  will  not  be  necessary 
to  say  much,  as  his  work  on  "  Greece,"  and  his 
"  Athens  and  Attica,"  are  well  known. 

It  is  not  much  to  be  wondered  at  that] his  health 
gave  way  after  so  much  fatigue  and  exposure,  and  he 
had  a  severe  illness  of  some  weeks  at  Athens,  close  to 
the  Temple  of  Theseus  (as  he  often  used  to  repeat), 
where  he  was  most  kindly  cared  for,  and  his  life  in 
all  probability  saved,  by  the  excellent  American 
chaplain   and  his  wife,  the  Rev.  J.  II.  and  Mrs.  Hill. 


—1836.]  ILLNESS  AT  ATHENS— SOJOURN  AT  ROME.  77 

Their  goodness  to  him  was  a  theme  for  gratitude  to 
his  dying  day. 

This  pause  in  the  career  of  one,  hitherto  so  active, 
so  vigorous,  and  so  successful,  and  that  at  a  time 
when  his  mind  was  predisposed  to  serious  thought 
by  the  prospect  of  shortly  entering  on  the  diaconate, 
and  in  a  place  where  all  things  were  full  of  the 
solemn  teachings  of  the  Past,  could  not  fail  to 
make  a  deep  impression  on  a  nature  like  his.  It 
was  a  time  to  which  he  very  frequently  referred 
in  after  life,  though  always  with  a  certain  subdued 
emphasis  which  seemed  to  imply  more  than  it 
expressed. 

After  a  delightful  sojourn  at  Rome,  in  which 
he  saw  the  antiquities  under  unusually  favourable 
circumstances,  and  where  he  received  many  kind- 
nesses, especially  from  the  Bunsen  family — kindnesses 
which  difference  of  opinion  in  after  years  could  never 
make  him  forget — and  after  spending  some  time  at 
Florence  in  the  study  of  art,  he  returned  to  England 
in  1833,  and  was  ordained  deacon  that  year  by 
Bishop  Kaye,  his  own  predecessor,  as  it  turned  out, 
in  the  See  of  Lincoln. 

In  1834  he  was  appointed  to  a  classical  lecture- 
ship at  Trinity,  and  in  1835  was  ordained  priest  by 
Bishop  Percy  of  Carlisle.  In  1836,  before  he  was 
twenty-nine  years  of  age,  he  obtained  the  coveted 
distinction  of  being  chosen  Public  Orator.  A  letter 
from  his  uncle  at  Rydal,  congratulating  him,  may 
be  given  here  : — 


78       EARLY  MANHOOD  AND  EARLY  TRAVELS.  [1830— 

r ■ 

Rydal  Mount,  February  ?>th. 
My  dear  Chris, — Your  letter  of  yesterday  agreeably 
removed  the  uncertainty,  I  might  say,  anxiety,  we  have 
been  in  about  your  success.  For  my  own  part,  I  was  so 
much  pleased  with  your  spirit  in  standing  forth  as  a 
candidate,  that,  taking  your  youth  into  consideration,  I 
should  have  felt  almost  sufificiently  gratified  by  the 
attempt,  even  if  you  had  not  succeeded.  Being  quite 
certain  that  you  are  fitted  for  the  office,  and  worthy  of  the 
honour  conferred  upon  you,  we  heartily  congratulate  you, 
with  best  wishes  for  your  health  and  happiness.  .  .  . 

With  best  love  to  your  father  and  John,  I  remain,  my 
dear  Chris, 

Your  affectionate  uncle, 

W.  W. 

Mr.  Robinson  tells  us  that  Mr.  Paynter,  a  Radical  friend 
of  his,  gave  you  a  vote,  not  so  much  for  your  own  merits 
as  in  gratitude  to  your  father,  who  protected  him  from 
insult  at  the  time  when  he  put  the  clerical  M.A.'s  to  the 
Bribery  Oath  ;  for  this  reason,  and  also  because  you  were 
a  "  poet's  nephew."  So  that  I  have  helped  you  a  "  wee 
bit." 

The  post  of  Public  Orator  was,  hov^ever,  only  held 
by  him  for  a  few  months,  as  he  was  appointed  Head- 
Master  of  Harrow  School  on  Dr.  Longley's  eleva- 
tion to  the  episcopate  early  in  the  same  year.  It 
was  expected  that  Charles,  who  was  a  Harrow  man, 
and  had  been  successful  as  a  scholar  both  there  and 
at  Oxford,  would  have  come  forward  as  a  candidate 
for  the  Mastership  ;  but,  knowing  that  his  brother 
was  then  desirous  of  leaving  Cambridge,  and  being 
himself  quite  content  with  the  position  which  he 
held  at  Winchester  as  second  master,    he  declined 


— 1S36.]     PUBLIC  ORATOR— MASTER  OF  HARROW.        79 

to  enter  the  lists ;  and  so  it  came  to  pass  that  the 
two  brothers  changed  places  with  reference  to  their 
respective  schools,  Charles,  the  Harrovian,  being 
eventually  connected  with  Winchester,  and  Chris- 
topher, the  Wykehamist,  with  Harrow.  The  fol- 
lowing letter  from  the  Master  of  Trinity  to  his 
brother,     will    appropriately    close    this    portion    of 

his  life  : — 

Trinity  Lodge,  Cambridge, 

April  17  ih,  1836. 
My  dear  Brother, — Chris,  who  has  been  for  the  last 
week  or  ten  days  spending  his  time  very  much  in  stage- 
coaches, came  down  from  town  on  Friday  evening,  and 
after  taking  leave  of  the  University  yesterday  (Saturday) 
in  his  capacity  of  Public  Orator,  on  presenting  one  of  the 
Saviles  for  his  degree,  on  which  occasion  there  was  a  full 
senate  of  graduates,  and  a  large  attendance  of  young  men 
in  the  galleries,  and  he  acquitted  himself  in  his  Valedic- 
tory capitally  (as  he  would  have  done,  if  he  had  continued 
with  us,  in  all  the  parts  of  that  interesting  office),  left  by 
the  mail  at  midnight,  and  is  to  be  at  Harrow  to-morrow, 
to  get  into  his  house,  and  to  get  himself  into  such  a 
degree  of  settlement  as  he  can  at  so  short  a  notice  before 
the  school  opens,  which  is  to  be  on  Wednesday.  He 
carries  away  with  him  a  very  excellent  helper  in  one  of 
our  Junior  Fellows — indeed  of  his  own  year,  of  the  name 
of  Steel — whom  I  had  designed  for  his  successor  as  Classical 
Lecturer  here.  .  .  .  He  [Steel]  will  succeed  Kennedy  there, 
who  goes  immediately  to  Shrewsbury,  in  consequence  of 
Butler  being  summoned  up  to  town  to  be  the  new  bishop. 
Chris's  loss,  as  you  will  easily  believe,  I  shall  feel  very 
deeply,  and  so  will  John,  so  will  the  college,  and  so 
indeed  will  the  whole  University 

At  this  point  we  pause,  leaving  the  future  Head- 


So         EARLY  MANHOOD  AND  EARLY  TRAVELS.    [1836. 

Master  of  Harrow  on  the  threshold  of  a  new  and 
untried  Hfe  in  a  position  full  (as  it  proved)  of  diffi- 
culty, and  one  in  which  his  powers  were  to  be  severely 
taxed,  yet  one  where  it  would  be  given  him  to  show 
not  only  the  brilliancy  of  his  classical  training,  but 
the  high  and  unworldly  character  of  which  the  elder 
generation  had  set  him  so  rare  an  example.  We 
cannot  doubt  the  earnestness  with  which  he  was 
followed  by  their  prayers. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


HARROW. 


The  chapter  of  Christopher  Wordsworth's  history  on 
which  we  are  now  entering  was  perhaps  the  most  try- 
ing part  of  his  whole  life.  The  first  plunge  from  the 
world  of  ideas  into  the  world  of  experience  is  apt  to  be 
a  painful  one,  and  the  practical  difficulties  connected 
with  Harrow  were  unusually  great.  The  period  of 
which  we  write  was  one  in  which  the  need  of  a  thorough 
reform  of  public  schools  was  beginning  to  be  widely 
felt.  Dr.  Longley,  the  late  Head-Master  of  Harrow, 
afterwards  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  had  made 
some  praiseworthy  efforts  in  this  direction.  Dr. 
Arnold's  work  at  Rugby  has  been  commemorated  by 
one  of  his  most  gifted  pupils.  At  Winchester  Dr. 
Moberly,  aided  by  Charles  Wordsworth  (whose  work, 
"Christian  Boyhood  at  a  Public  School,"  is  doubt- 
less familiar  to  many  readers),  was  endeavouring 
zealously  to  infuse  a  higher  tone  of  morals,  manners, 
and  religion.  At  Eton  such  men  as  George  Selwyn — 
to  mention  no  others — were  labourino-  for  the  same 

o 

end.  It  is  difficult  indeed  for  the  schoolboy  of  1S87 
to  imagine  the  conditions  under  which  his  father,  or 
at  least  his  grandfather  received  his  education. 

G 


82  HARROW.  [1836— 

Of  the  lack  of  discipline  at  Harrow/  just  before 
Dr.  Wordsworth's  accession  to  the  Head-Mastership, 
some  idea  may  be  gathered  from  the  Morning  Herald 
of  July  7th,  1836,  which  gives  an  account  of  an  inquest 
held  on  a  post-boy  who  died  in  St.  George's  Hos- 
pital, in  consequence  of  an  accident  which  befell  him 
in  a  race  of  post-chaises  from  Harrow  to  London  : — 
"  Five  or  six  post-chaises  in  which  were  young 
gentlemen  from  Harrow  School,  proceeding  at  a 
furious  rate  towards  town  .  .  .  the  chaises  were  as 
close  together  as  they  could  possibly  be — they  went 
at  such  a  furious  rate  that  they  had  not  the  least 
control  over  the  horses. ...  A  gentleman  in  one  of  the 
chaises  said  he  would  pay  the  damage  done  (from 
upsetting  chaise  against  a  timber-carriage),  but  that 
he  would  not  pay  the  wager,  as  there  had  not  been 
fair  play."  This  is  followed  by  the  names  of  fourteen 
young  Harrovians  who  took  part  in  the  race,  many 
of  them  youths  of  title  and  high  social  position. 

One  witness  (a  policeman)  added  that  the  chaises 
were  going  at  the  rate  of  fifteen  or  sixteen  miles  an 
hour,  and  that  the  races  of  the  Harrow  scholars  were 
so  well  known  on  the  road,  that  people  met  at  the 
"  Red  Lion"  to  see  them  come  in  ;  there  was  a 
number  assembled  at  the  time  the  accident  happened. 

It  is  scarcely  possible  to  conceive  that  a  man  of 
Dr.  Wordsworth's  high  standard  and  uncompromising 

'  For  further  details  of  the  state  of  Harrow,  see  "  Harrow 
School  and  its  Surroundings,"  by  Mr.  Percy  Thornton.  (W.  H- 
Allen  and  Co.     1885.) 


—1844-]     LETTER  FROM  MR.  BERESFORD-HOPE.  83 

disposition  could  have  been  brought  into  contact 
with  such  a  school  as  Harrow  then  was,  without  a 
considerable  strain  on  the  relations  between  the 
head-master  and  those,  whether  masters  or  boys, 
who  upheld  the  old  order  of  things.  The  following 
letter  from  the  Right  Hon.  A.  J.  B.  Beresford-Hope, 
who  has  passed  away  from  us  while  this  work  was  in 
the  course  of  printing,  gives  the  recollections  of  one 
of  Dr.  Wordsworth's  most  distinguished  pupils : — 

Arkloiu  House,  Connaught  Place, 
Nov.  8,  1886. 
My  dear  Sir, — Your  invitation  to  me  to  send  you  my 
Harrow  recollections  of  Dr.  Wordsworth  is  very  compli- 
mentary but  very  puzzling,  for  it  calls  upon  me  to  travel 
over  half  a  century  of  anxious  years  and  offer  precise  re- 
collections of  circumstances,  as  to  which  it  would  be 
difficult  for  a  schoolboy  to  be  precise.  The  difference 
between  the  two  successive  head-masters,  Dr.  Longley  and 
Dr.  Wordsworth,  was  very  marked  and  characteristic  of 
Oxford  and  Cambridge  as  they  then  presented  themselves. 
Under  Dr.  Longley  we  had  learnt  to  take  much  pleasure — 
those  of  us,  I  mean,  who  were  reading  boys — in  a  refined 
type  of  elegant  scholarship ;  but  a  scholarship  connected 
rather  with  general  culture  than  with  philology,  properly 
so-called.  When  Dr.  Wordsworth  came  to  Harrow  we 
were  conscious  of  a  student  in  whom  the  fire  of  enthusiasm 
for  philology  burnt  keenly  and  extended  over  branches  of 
learning  of  which  the  boys  had  hitherto  known  and  cared 
but  little.  As  an  instance  of  the  spirit  with  which  the  new 
head-master  buckled  up  to  his  work,  I  may  mention  an 
incident  which  undoubtedly  did  not  tend  to  make  his 
mastership  in  his  earlier  days  work  more  smoothly.  Dr. 
Wordsworth  was  certainly  right  in  his  principle,  but  he 

G  2 


84  HARROW.  [1836— 

might  more  wisely  have  carried  out  his  reform  with  greater 
circumspection.  A  very  important  part  of  the  schoolwork 
in  those  days  was  showing  up  exercises  in  Greek  and  Latin 
to  the  Form-master ;  these  exercises,  by  a  venerable  tra- 
dition, had  previously  been  corrected  by  the  private  tutors 
of  the  boys,  so  the  Form-masters  had  not  touch  of  their 
real  capacity,  but  only  of  the  improved  and  corrected  edi- 
tion supplied  by  the  tutors.  Dr.  Wordsworth  lost  no  time 
in  abolishing  tutorial  correction  for  the  Sixth  Form  boys, 
to  whom  he  was  himself  Form-master.  This  was  very  well 
in  itself,  but  it  caused  bitter  resentment  with  a  very  active 
and  influential  master,  famous  for  his  ability  in  the  old- 
fashioned  scholarship  of  Greek  and  Latin  composition. 
Those  who,  like  myself,  were  his  pupils  were  gainers  by  the 
change,  if  we  had  known  our  own  blessings,  for  we  had 
thenceforward  not  only  to  write  our  Form  exercises 
for  the  head-master,  but  duplicate  exercises  to  give  our 
tutors  something  to  look  over.  Still,  the  whole  affair  was 
much  to  be  lamented.  Among  the  benefits  bestowed  by 
Dr.  Wordsworth  on  the  school,  foremost  comes  the  building 
of  the  school  chapel ;  with  this  work  old  order  ceased,  and 
Harrow  School  took  its  place  in  the  general  revival  of 
Church  interests.  Words  cannot  describe  the  dreariness  of 
the  worship  offered  to  us  in  my  days.  One  rustic,  battered 
gallery  filled  up  the  west  end  of  the  nave  of  Harrow  Parish 
Church  and  served  for  the  Upper  boys  ;  another  stifling  and 
cavernous  gallery  was  hitched  into  the  north  aisle  for  the 
Lower  boys.  The  worship  took  no  account  of  the  needs 
and  peculiarities  of  schoolboys,  but  was  merely  the  parish 
worship  of  which  they  were  casual  spectators.  This 
worship,  too,  was  conducted  under  pronounced  Low  Church 
influence,  and  was  far  from  attractive.  With  a  school 
chapel  built  by  Dr.  Wordsworth,  all  was  changed.  The 
original  building,  due  to  Mr.  Cockcrcll,  had  not  much  to 
say  for  itself  architecturally,  but  the  spirit  of  the  thing  was 
there—  it  was  the  place  of  worship  of  the  school  and  meant 


-I844-]       EFFORTS  TO  IMPROVE  THE  SCHOOL.  85 

for  the  wants  of  the  school  ;  bit  by  bit,  it  has  been  replaced 
by  the  present  beautiful  chapel,  but  as  the  dawn  of  good 
things,  Dr.  Wordsworth's  chapel  should  be  held  in  ever- 
lasting remembrance. 

Believe  me,  yours  very  sincerely, 

A.  J.  B.  Beresford-Hope. 

From  the  above  letter  it  will  be  seen  that  it  vi^as 
not  merely  in  enforcing  discipline  that  the  young 
head-master  found  a  difficult  task  before  him,  but  in 
implanting  and  fostering  the  growth  of  Church  feeling, 
which  was  almost  dead  within  the  school.  His  en- 
deavours to  do  this  lost  him  a  considerable  number  of 
supporters  in  certain  well-known  quarters^  though  the 
Churchmanship  which  he  advocated  was  in  reality  the 
surest  safeguard  against  Romanism.  It  must  doubt- 
less be  confessed  that  the  suavite}"  in  modo  did  not 
always,  at  this  period  of  his  life,  accompany  the 
fortiter  in  re  as  unfailingly  as  it  did  in  late  years. 
When  almost  still  a  schoolboy  he  sent  letters  to  the 
papers  which  were  considered  "  too  sharp  and  witty 
to  be  inserted."  An  old  Rugby  master  has  told  us 
that  on  the  memorable  occasion  when  Dr.  Wordsworth 
examined  Stanley  and  Vaughan  at  Rugby,  he  left 
behind  him  an  impression  of  caustic  shrewdness  and 
sharpness  of  repartee  which  those  who  only  knew 
him  later  in  life  find  it  hard  to  imagine.  Looking 
back  on  the  Harrow  days  we  can  hardly  fail  to  see 
how  he  was  being  educated  while  occupied  in  the 
education  of  others.  Much  of  the  tact  and  forbear- 
ance which  he  showed  in  later  life  was  no  doubt  due 


86  HARROW.  [1836— 

to  the  lessons  he  learned  in  his  difficult  and  trying 
head-mastership.  He  himself  used  to  say,  referring 
to  the  reform  at  Harrow,  "  If  I  had  been  an  older 
man  I  could  not  have  done  it,"  and  in  some  degree 
to  imply  that  if  he  had  been  an  older  man  he 
would,  if  possible,  have  gone  to  work  in  a  somewhat 
more  tolerant  and  patient  spirit  than  he  did.  The 
numbers  of  the  school,  which  had  risen  when  he  first 
entered  it,  fell  off  very  much  towards  the  close  of 
his  head-mastership.  On  the  other  hand  it  may  be 
safely  affirmed  that  much  of  the  progress  since  made 
by  Harrow  was  due  to  the  courage  and  disregard 
of  popularity  which  made  him  earnestly  endeavour, 
not  only  to  plough  up  bad  traditions,  but  to  sow 
better  things  in  their  place. 

But  this  trying  period  of  his  life  was  to  bring  him 
the  greatest  of  all  earthly  blessings,  the  devotion  of 
an  almost  perfect  wife.  On  December  6th,  1838, 
he  was  married  by  Canon  Temple  Frere,  at  Thorley 
Church,  near  Bishop's  Stortford,  to  Susanna  Hatley, 
second  daughter  of  George  Frere,  of  Twyford 
House,  and  Elizabeth  Raper  (Grant)  his  wife.  The 
bride  was  then  twenty-seven  years  of  age,  the  bride- 
groom being  thirty-one. 

It  is  difficult  to  describe  one  whose  whole  effort 
in  life  seemed  to  be  to  efface  herself.  She  was  in 
many  respects  the  complement  of  her  husband.  Even 
in  externals  an  artist  could  hardly  have  desired  a 
more  effective  contrast  than  that  which  was  offered 
by  the  elegance  and  delicate  beauty  of  her  face,  with 


—1844.]  HIS  MARRIAGE.  87 

its  calm,  tender  blue  eyes  and  clear  complexion,  to 
his  dark,  almost  foreign  colouring,  large  head,  and 
massive  features,  with  their  bold  light  and  shade  and 
endless  play  of  expression  ;  and  with  regard  to 
character,  it  may  be  said  that,  while  his  whole  nature 
was  ever  hungering  for  fresh  information,  originating 
fresh  plans,  discovering  fresh  combinations,  and  often 
doubtless  falling  short  of  its  ideal,  hers  aimed 
at  and  almost  reached  perfection  within  certain 
limits. 

Casual  acquaintances,  who  in  later  years  saw  the 
husband  and  wife  together,  the  former  attracting 
a  group  of  listeners,  with  his  bright  face,  animated 
manner,  and  eager  gesticulation,  as  he  walked  up 
and  down  the  room  pouring  forth  his  thoughts  to 
the  rhythm  of  his  active  footsteps  ;  the  latter,  sit- 
ting quietly  knitting  (and  often  prevented  by  a 
slight  deafness  from  following  the  thread  of  con- 
versation), would  perhaps  have  hardly  guessed  how 
much  he  really  leant  on  her — in  some  ways,  if  not 
actually  the  stronger,  certainly  the  calmer,  character 
of  the  two.  Her  evenness  of  temper,  her  sterling 
every-day  good  sense  and  unselfish  sympathy  made 
her  the  ideal  wife  for  a  man  like  himself.  Their 
married  happiness  was  as  near  perfection  as  anything 
on  this  side  of  Eden  could  be  ;  yet  so  entirely  did 
she  keep  herself  in  the  background  that  no  one  but 
those  who  saw  him  after  her  death  could  form  an 
idea  of  all  that  she  had  been  to  him.  It  is  scarcely 
an  exaggeration  to  say  that  in  those  five  sad  months 


HARROW.  [1836— 


during  which  he  survived  her,  he  was  never  seen  to 
smile. 

But  to  return.  The  Frere  family,  of  which  she 
was  a  daughter,  had  been  settled  in  Norfolk  and 
Suffolk  since  very  early  days,  and  traced  their 
genealogy  to  William  de  Warrenne  and  his  wife, 
the  celebrated  Gundreda.  George  Frere  was  one 
of  the  seven  sons  of  John  Frere,  M.P.,^  of  Roy- 
don  Hall,  Norfolk,  whose  wife  Jane  (Hookham)  was 
the  pupil  and  protegee  of  William  Stevens,  the 
founder,  already  mentioned,  of  Nobody's  Club,  and 
was  a  woman  of  remarkable  character.  Of  these 
seven  sons,  John  Hookham,  the  eldest,  the  friend  of 
Canning  and  translator  of  Aristophanes,  and  his 
brother  Bartholomew,  also  in  the  diplomatic  service, 
were  not  unknown  in  the  history  of  their  own  time. 
Hatley  will  be  gratefully  remembered  as  the  inventor 
of  the  alphabet  for  the  blind,  since  perfected  by  Mr. 
Moon ;  William  was  Master  of  Downing  College, 
and  Temple  Canon  of  Westminster,  and  Edward 
was  the  father  of  Sir  Bartle  Frere.  They  were  a 
remarkable  group  of  English  gentlemen,  of  fine 
persons,  courteous  manners  and  high  conscientious- 
ness, and  strong  family  attachment.  At  the  time 
we  write  of,  Mr.  George  Frere  was  a  solicitor,  of  the 
firm  of  Frere,  Foster,  and  Co.,  in  Lincoln's  Inn,  and 

-  Mr.  Frere  was  a  remarkable  mathematician,  Second  Wrangler 
in  Paley's  year.  As  early  as  1797  we  find  him  laying  a  paper  on 
flint  weapons  discovered  at  Iloxne,  in  Suffolk,  before  the  Society 
of  Antiquaries,  of  which  he  was  a  Fellow. 


—1 844-]  THE  FRERE  FAMILY.  89 

had,  as  we  have  seen,  married  Elizabeth  Raper  Grant, 
by  whom  he  had  four  sons  and  four  daughters.  The 
eldest  son,  John,  has  been  already  mentioned  as  a  col- 
lege friend  of  Christopher  Wordsworth.  Of  the  eldest 
daughter,  Elizabeth,  a  special  mention  must  be  here- 
after made.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Frere  lived  at  Hampstead, 
amid  a  circle  which  comprised  such  men  as  Coleridge, 
Rossetti  (the  father  of  the  poet).  Dr.  William  Crotch, 
the  well-known  composer,  William  Stewart  Rose, 
Mr.  Morier,  and  others,  and  such  women  as  Joanna 
Baillie,  the  Fanshawe  sisters,  &c. 

Mrs.  Frere  was  the  most  sympathetic  of  women 
and  the  best  of  hostesses,  and  it  was  amidst  such 
surroundings  as  these  that  her  daughters  grew  up. 
As  has  been  seen,  the  Master  of  Trinity  and  his  sons 
were  frequently  at  the  house  of  Mrs.  Hoare,  and  it 
was  there,  probably,  that  the  young  people  met. 
Part  of  a  letter  from  one  of  Mrs.  Wordsworth's 
surviving  sisters  is  inserted  here,  as  it  gives  the 
description  of  the  event  by  an  eye-witness  : — 

My  dearest, — I  very  rarely  saw  your  father  before 
his  engagement  to  your  mother,  although  he  was  so  dear 
a  friend  of  my  eldest  brother  John  that  we  heard  a  great 
deal  of  him,  as  also  we  did  from  the  Hoares,  who  were 
then  our  near  neighbours  at  Hampstead.  Mrs.  Hoare 
took  a  very  motherly  interest  in  him,  and  was  a  great 
friend  of  my  own  mother's,  and  m.any  a  talk  they  had 
about  the  young  men  when  they  were  competing  for  the 
same  prizes  at  Cambridge.  We  met  once,  I  remember,  at 
an  evening  party  at  the  Hoares' ;  there  was  some  music 
from  the  younger  guests.  .  .  The  only  piece  which 
seemed  to  attract  him  at  all  I  remember  was  Mrs.  Hemans' 


90  HA  RRO IV.  [  1 836— 

"  Greek  Exile,"  which  we  thought  rather  an  amusing 
specimen  of  his  fondness  for  Greece  and  non-appreciation 
of  music  in  general.  We  also  saw  him  at  Cambridge  at 
the  "  Installation,"  when  the  Duke  of  Wellington  was 
made  Chancellor.  There  was  a  grand  dcjei'tner  in  Trinity 
Gardens  ;  he  came  to  us  from  the  crowd,  and  took  one  of 
my  sisters  on  each  arm  to  show  them  about.  This  was 
felt  as  a  great  honour  and  pleasure,  for  I  need  not  say 
how  agreeable  he  always  was,  and  this,  I  think  was  the 
first  and  only  time  that  he  showed  an  inclination  for  the 
alliance  he  afterwards  proposed,  till  he  made  the  bond-fide 
offer  in  1838 — though  he  dined  with  us  sometimes  in 
London,  whither  we  moved  from  Hampstead  in  1830 ; 
but  we  heard  a  great  deal  of  his  books  and  his  travels,  and 
thought  his  friendship  an  honour  to  my  brother.  We 
were  all  at  Twyford  when  the  great  event  happened.  We 
could  not  but  suspect  something,  from  the  circumstance 
of  his  proposing  to  come  and  see  us  at  a  time  when  my 
brother  was  absent.  .  .  .  My  father  and  mother  took  the 
carriage  to  meet  him  at  Bishop's  Stortford,  and  it  so  hap- 
pened that  your  mother  went  with  them.  The  next  day 
the  same  trio  went  with  him  for  a  walk,  and  when  they 
came  back  the  business  was  done.  Your  mother  was 
extremely  surprised,  as  in  her  modesty  she  had  no  idea 
of  his  preference,  but  had  not  a  moment's  hesitation 
in  accepting  his  offer.  He  was  greatly  pleased  with  the 
way  in  which  he  was  at  once  identified  with  us,  and 
told  her  he  had  not  calculated  beforehand  on  the  advan- 
tage of  having  sisters  as  well  as  a  wife.  She  took  from 
the  very  first  that  line  of  devotion  to  him  which  never 
altered  to  the  time  of  her  death  :  ministering  to  all  his 
wants,  and  solicitous  for  his  comfort  and  wellbeing,  her 
whole  delight  was  to  be  his  handmaid,  and  to  try  to  fulfil 
every  wish  of  his  heart,  and  I  think  she  did  it.  I  always 
thought  that  verse  in  the  last  chapter  of  Proverbs  so  appli- 
cable to  her — "  The  heart  of  her  husband  doth  safely  trust 


—  1 844- J  LETTER  OF  HIS  SISTER-IN-LAW  91 

in  her,"  As  soon  as  we  could  assemble  after  breakfast,  he 
used  to  read  aloud  to  my  mother  and  us.  Southey's 
"  Madoc  "  was  the  book.  Of  course  he  did  it  full  justice. 
He  stayed  a  week,  I  think,  and  after  this,  closely-filled 
pages  used  to  come  every  day  by  post.  He  wrote  then  a 
very  small  and  remarkably  neat  finished  hand.  You  may 
be  sure  we  longed  to  see  the  letters,  but  we  never  did.  .  .  . 
After  he  had  been  gone  back  to  Harrow  some  Vvceks,  it 
was  proposed  that  my  father  and  mother  and  Susan 
should  pay  him  a  visit,  to  break  the  time  till  the  next 
vacation.  They  drove  over  there  and  had  a  delightful 
day.  Some  time  afterwards  your  mother  told  us  that  he 
had  taken  her  by  herself  into  every  room,  and  had  a  little 
appropriate  prayer  prepared  for  each,  which  must  have 
given  her  great  insight  into  the  practical  holiness  of  his 
life  and  conversation.  Not  long  after  this  his  house  was 
burnt  down,  which  was  a  great  shock,  but  a  cottage  was 
soon  found  and  was  got  ready  in  time  for  the  wedding, 
chiefly  by  the  affectionate  zeal  of  a  sister  of  the  second 
master  (Oxenham),  who  had  a  warm  admiration  for 
him.  The  ceiling  of  the  little  drawing-room  was  very 
low  and  coved,  and  she  decorated  it  with  her  own 
hands  with  paintings  of  flowers  and  branches,  so  as  to 
give  it  almost  the  appearance  of  a  bower.  .  .  .  During 
the  next  three  years  (after  the  marriage)  we  paid  various 
short  visits  to  Harrow,  which  were,  of  course,  very  delight- 
ful to  us,  though  your  father's  work  was  so  heavy  that 
even  then  he  seemed  fit  for  little  besides  resting  whenever 
there  was  a  pause  in  it.  On  one  of  these  occasions  I  re- 
member his  lying  down,  as  if  exhausted,  on  the  sofa,  and 
presently  saying  to  his  wife,  "  Give  me  the  grammar  "  (he 
was  then  editing  "Edward  VI. 's  LatinGrammar"),  which  he 
took  with  satisfaction  as  a  means  of  recreation.  The  next 
event  was  the  birth  of  his  eldest  child.  When  I  went 
there  afterwards  he  expressed  to  me  a  humorous  dissatis- 
faction about  her,  saying  he  had  always  supposed  when 


92  HARROW.  [1836— 

he  had  a  child  it  would  be  like  that  (pointing  to  the  Child 
in  the  Holy  Family  by  Vandyke),  and  able  to  run  about 
and  be  talked  to.     He  certainly  began  to  talk  to  and  to 
instruct  her  as  soon  as  ever  she  was  able  to  profit  by  it, 
making  her  repeat  a  list  of  bishops  and  their  sees  ("  Who 
was   St.  Augustine  ? "  &c.,  and  ending  with   "  Who  was 
John  Lyon  }  " — Answer  :   "  Founder  of  Harrow  School ") 
to   earn  some  fruit  at  dessert.     He  was  with  us  during 
part  of  the  vacation  not  long   after,  when  our  dear  old 
friend,   Mrs.   Sophia  Williams,   died  at  Twyford.      They 
were   just  about  to  leave  us,  but  remained  till  after  the 
funeral,  and  I  shall  never  forget  the  remarkable  gifts    of 
conversation    he    showed    during  the  four  or  five  dreary 
days  which  intervened.     Shut  up  as  all  were  in  a  country 
house — all  of  us  very  sorrowful,  and  with  nothing  to  break 
the  monotony — he  was  the  life  of  us  all.     Without  any 
appearance  of  effort  he  kept  up  talk  upon  some  topic  of 
interest,  never  trivial  or  humorous,  or  what  would  jar  on 
our  feelings,  but  such  as    all   could  take  an  interest  in 
during  meals  or  other  hours  of  social  gathering,  and  even 
at  the  time  of  the  funeral.     The  first  time   I   remember 
making  any  long  stay  at  Harrow  was  in  1841,  when  I  had 
an  opportunity  of  appreciating  the  value  of  his  help  and 
guidance  in   religious  matters,   and  learnt  more  in  a  few 
days  of  intercourse  than   in   years  of  my  life  before.     I 
never  met  with  any  one  who  was  so  capable  of  meeting 
difficulties,  for  he  seemed  to  have  mastered  every  subject 
that  could  be  brought  before  him  ;  but  the  chief  charm  of 
his  power  in  this  way  was  the  ease  with  which  what  one 
wanted  was  obtained.     You   had  only  (as  it  were)  to  tap 
the  subject,  and  the  learning  and  instruction   flowed  out 
like  a  full  river.     Nor  did  it  seem   to  give  him  the  least 
trouble  or  annoyance  to  be  asked  questions,  though  of  course 
the  most  of  them   must   have  been  as  A  B  C  in  theology. 
He  was  indeed  as  a  householder  bringing  forth  out  of  his 
treasures  things  new  and  old,  and  no  one  seemed  to  be  so 


— iS44-]  FIRE  AT  HARROW  IN  1838.  93 

mean  or  ignorant  as  not  to  be  welcome  to  the  best  of  his 
rich  store.  ...  I  was  at  Harrow  Speeches  that  year,  and 
remember  how  he  seemed  in  his  element,  entertaining  his 
guests,  and  able  to  say  the  exact  thing  suitable  to  them. 
I  think  this  was  the  year  when  the  Chevalier  Bunsen  and 
his  wife  were  there.  He  had  a  great  esteem  for  Bunsen, 
but  I  remember  the  amused  half-smile  with  which  he  said 
he  had  undertaken  to  write  a  liturgy  all  by  himself.  .  .  . 

Your  affectionate 

A.  F. 

The  following  note  was  sent  with  a  packet  con- 
taining the  nine  gold  medals  won  by  Christopher 
Wordsworth  at  Winchester  and  Cambrldoe,  to  his 
betrothed,  the  day  after  their  engagement,  the 
anniversary  of  which  was  never  forgotten  by  him  in 
later  years. 

Harrozv,  Ajtg.  18,  1838. 

....  If  I  can  connect  with  you  my  past  2iS  well  as  my 
ftiUire  life,  both  will  have  more  value  in  my  estimation. 
And,  therefore,  I  beg  you  to  accept  the  enclosed  records 
of  boyish  honours,  which  would  have  had  more  charm 
for  me  than  they  possessed,  even  when  first  won,  had  I 
foreseen  that  they  would  ever,  together  with  myself,  have 
become  yours.  Having  won  you,  I  am  not  eager  for  any 
other  honours  in  this  world.  May  God  of  His  infinite 
mercy  grant  that  we  may  both  obtain  together  a  crown  of 
glory  in  that  which  is  to  come. 

The  following  letter  gives  an  account  of  the  well- 
known  fire  at  Harrow  in  1838.  Apart  from  the 
more  obvious  evils  of  such  a  misfortune,  this  de- 
struction of  the  head-master's  house,  which,  as  Mr. 
Thornton  tells  us,  was  "in  ♦ihe  minds  of  many  'old 
Harrovians  '  the  school  itself,  could  not  but  accelerate 


94  HARROW.  [1836— 

the  school's  decline."  It  will  interest  many  of  our 
readers  to  see  in  what  spirit  the  trouble  was 
encountered  by  him  whom  it  most  concerned. 

Harrow,  Oct.  22  [1838]. 
Five  ininiLtes past  two  {morning). 

My  dearest, — I  had  thought  of  writing  to  your  father 
rather  than  to  you,  to  give  an  account  of  the  misfor- 
tune which  it  has  pleased  God  should  happen  this  even- 
ing, but  I  feel  satisfied  on  reflection  that  you  are  prepared 
for  such  events  as  a  part  of  our  condition  here,  and  also 
that  yon  are  the  person,  above  all  others,  to  whom  I  feel 
it  both  the  greatest  happiness  as  well  as  the  first  duty 
to  communicate  everything  that  concerns  me  without 
reserve. 

This  evening,  then,  while  I  was  sitting  after  dinner,  and 
had  just  hung  up  your  Uncle  Bartle's  print  which  had  just 
arrived,  and  was  looking  with  much  pleasure  at  the  purse 
which  came  with  it,  one  of  the  servants  came  into  the  room 
in  great  haste  to  tell  me  that  the  house  was  on  fire.  I 
found,  on  going  to  the  place,  that  it  was  blazing  with  great 
fury,  having  broken  out  in  a  part  of  the  building  which  was 
made  of  nothing  but  lath  and  plaster  ;  the  precise  spot 
was  one  of  the  studies  immediately  contiguous  to  the 
houses  close  to  the  drawing-room.  It  was  soon  evident 
from  the  direction  of  the  wind  and  the  deficiency  of  water 
that  there  was  no  chance  of  saving  the  house.  All  exer- 
tions were  then  directed  to  preserve  the  furniture.  In  this, 
I  am  glad  to  say,  they  were  very  successful.  It  is  not 
easy  to  say  what  the  precise  loss  may  be  yet,  but  I  believe 
that  the  greater  part  of  the  books  are  saved,  and  also  a 
considerable  portion  of  the  furniture.  I  have  just  left  the 
house  itself;  the  outside  walls  arc  standing,  the  rest  is 
consumed.  Thank  God  the  wind  was  not  strong,  and  set 
in  such  a  quarter  that  no  other  house  was  injured  beside 


—  1 844-]  HIS  ACCOUNT  OF  THE  FIRE.  95 

my  own  and  the  adjoining  bedrooms,  &c.,  which  belong 
to  Mr.  Colenso.*  He  had  very  providentially  just  insured 
his  property  and  buildings  two  days  ago.  The  boys  were 
very  active  in  their  attempts  to  put  out  the  fire,  and  I  am 
glad  to  say  that  nothing  was  left  undone  that  could  have 
been  attempted  to  save  the  premises.  How  very  fortunate 
it  is  that  this  did  not  happen  last  Monday  when  I  was 
sitting  by  your  side,  at  the  same  hour,  looking  at  Hamlet 
and  Ophelia.  Now,  my  dearest  S.,  I  hope  you  will  not 
feel  very  much  grieved  at  this  accident.  I  shall  be  very, 
very  sorry  if  you  are,  and  shall  tJien  find  it  rather  difficult 
to  bear  it.  But  if  you  are  not,  which  I  hope  you  will  not 
be,  it  will  not  pain  me  much,  because  it  is  God's  work,  and 
will,  I  doubt  not,  turn  out  all  for  the  best  in  the  end.  How 
much  worse  it  would  have  been  had  it  happened  two 
months  hence  ;  now  there  is  some  temporary  loss  and  in- 
convenience to  submit  to,  but  this  I  shall  soon  be  accus- 
tomed to.  .  .  . 

Among  other  incidents  of  this  fire  it  may  be  men- 
tioned that  he  had  ^reat  diflficulty  in  saving  a  MS. 
of  Greek  Testament  brought  from  Mount  Athos  ;  a 
thief  actually  wrenched  off  the  clasps,  in  the  general 
confusion,  thinking  they  vi^ere  silver. 

Harroiv,  Oct.  24,  1838. 
I  have  just  had  a  very  kind  visit  indeed  from  Mrs.  and 
Miss  Hoare.  They  have  been  to  see  what  zvas,  what  still 
is,  and  what,  I  hope  it  may  please  God,  one  day  is  to  be. 
Thei/  visit  has  been  a  great  comfort  to  me,  because  they 
soon  came  round  to  the  opinion  that  we  have  the  greatest 
reason  for  thankfulness  for  many  of  the  circumstances 
under  which  the  event  occurred,  and  also  that  there  is  much 
cause  to  hope  that  great  ultimate  good  will  arise  from  the 

^  Afterwards  Bishop. 


96  HARROW.  [1836— 

present  temporary  difficulty.  Having  been  with  me  to  the 
ruins  of  the  old  house,  they  proceeded  to  a  small  place 
which  one  of  the  masters  (Mr.  Phelps)  has  kindly  offered 
me  rent  free  as  long  as  is  convenient.  It  communicates 
through  his  park  with  our  garden,  so  that  there  is  no 
necessity  for  going  into  the  high-road  in  order  to  pass 
from  one  to  the  other.  It  looks  over  the  park,  and  is  very 
quiet  and  retired.  It  is  not  furnished,  which  is  a  great 
advantage^  as  it  affords  room  for  the  furniture  which  re- 
mains from  the  former  house.  This  latter  will  soon 
entirely  disappear,  the  walls  being  too  much  injured  to  be 
allowed  to  stand.  This  will  render  the  selection  of  a  new 
site  further  removed  from  the  street  into  the  garden  (so 
that  it  will  not  be  overlooked  by  its  neighbours),  much 
more  likely  to  be  made  by  the  governors.  .  .  .  All  is  going 
on  in  as  easy  and  promising  a  way  as  could  be  hoped,  and 
if  you  will  shake  hands  and  make  it  up  with  the  fire,  I  am 
quite  ready  to  do  so  ;  but  I  won't  if  you  do  not. 

Oct.  31. 
.  .  .  Now,  as  far  as  description  goes,  you  can  tell  all 
about  it,  but  ....  you  cannot  tell  (if  it  please  God  so 
to  bless  us)  how  very,  very  happy  we  shall  be  in  this  little 
cottage,  where  we  shall  have  but  one  heart  and  one  soul 
between  us,  and  where  we  shall  have  more  leisure  and  oppor- 
tunity for  helping  one  another  than  anywhere  else.  Do  let 
me  send  you  a  passage  which  came  across  me  this  morn- 
ing in  the  Wisdom  of  Solomon.  Be  sure  that  in  reading 
it  my  heart  was  with  you.  "  Therefore  I  purposed  to  take 
her  to  live  with  me,  knowing  that  she  would  be  a  counsellor 
of  good  things,  and  a  comfort  in  cares  and  grief  After  I 
am  come  into  mine  house,  I  will  repose  myself  with  her, 
for  her  conversation  hath  no  bitterness,  and  to  live  with 
her  hath  no  sorrow,  but  mirth  and  joy."  Thank  God  for 
this  great  mercy ! 

The   following  refers    to  his   projected    work    on 
Greece : — 


—  1 844-]  TROUBLES  AT  HARROW.  97 

H arrow y  Nov.  i. 
.  .  .  What  do  you  say  to  engaging  in  writing  short 
descriptions  of  scenes  in  Greece,  to  accompany  a  collection 
of  views  of  scenes,  &c.,  in  that  country  ?  A  London  pub- 
lisher wishes  to  know  what  we  think  about  this.  He  is 
coming  here  to-morrow  to  state  further  the  details  of  his 
plan.  It  might  be  a  pleasant  and  not  very  laborious  occu- 
pation, and  therefore,  if  the  proposal  is  reasonable,  it  may 
be  worth  our  considering.  .  .  . 

It  was  a  happy  thing  that  Dr.  Wordsworth*  was 
permitted  to  enjoy  this  greatest  of  all  earthly  bless- 
ings at  this  special  time  ;  for  his  life,  which  had 
hitherto  been  one  of  almost  unclouded  prosperity, 
began  now  to  be  dimmed  with  family  sorrows  and 
professional  cares.  The  first  year  after  his  marriage 
was  marked  by  two  great  losses.  On  the  loth  of 
May,  1839,  his  brother  Charles,  then  Second  Master 
at  Winchester,  was  bereaved  of  his  wife,  who  died 
in  childbirth,  leaving  an  infant  daughter.  This 
event  came  like  a  clap  of  thunder  into  a  home  circle 
which  had  hitherto  been  bright  as  a  summer's  day. 
Survivors  of  those  old  times  will  remember  the 
romantic  courtship,  the  passionate  love,  the  brief 
period  of  wedded  happiness  with  one  so  fitted  to 
adorn  his  home,  and  the  grief  which  found  vent  in 
those  few  heartfelt  words  still  preserved  in  the 
vestibule  of  the  chapel  at  Winchester  : — 

"  I,  nimium  dilecta !  vocat  Deus  :  I,  bona  nostrae 
Pars  animae  !  mcerens  altera,  disce  sequi." 

*  He  took  his  D.D.  degree, /^r  literas  regias,  in  1839. 

H 


HARROW.  [1836— 


Seven  months  afterwards  John  Wordsworth  passed 
away  at  Trinity,  on  the  last  day  of  the  same  year. 
His  brothers  were  with  him,  as  the  following  letters 
to  Mrs.  C.  Wordsworth  show  : — 

Trinity  Lodge,  Dec.  17,  1839. 
My  dearest, — If  it  please  God  to  bless  the  means 
used  for  dear  John's  recovery,  my  father  hopes  he  will  be 
able  to  get  to  Italy  early  in  the  spring.  It  is  a  great 
blessing  that  my  father  himself  is  so  well.  ...  It  is 
delightful  to  see  how  much  John  feels  for  all  his  kindness 
and  attention  to  him  ;  he  seems  to  desire  nothing  in  the 
world  but  what  he  has  in  him.  My  father  reads  prayers 
in  his  room  morning  and  evening,  and  it  is  a  great  bless- 
ing that  John  can  fix  his  attention  upon  them,  for  he  is 
quite  unequal  to  any  mental  exertion  of  any  other  kind. 
We  have  had  the  kindest  letter  this  morning  from  Mrs. 
Hoare. 

Dec.  19. 
We  were  very  agreeably  surprised  by  Charles'  arrival 
to-day  at  three  o'clock.     He   had  travelled  all  night  from 
Winchester ;  is  looking  pretty  well  upon  the  whole,  and 
gives  a  good  account  of  his  dear  baby. 

St.  Thomas'  Eve. 
My  dear  Love, — This  will  be  but  a  shabby  line,  for  I 
hardly  know  how  to  write  :  we  do  not,  I  fear,  make  much 
progress.  Dr.  Haviland  looked,  I  thought,  more  gloomy 
this  morning.  .  .  .  You  have  done  quite  rightabout  Sally; 
• — why  should  gentlemen  and  ladies  be  eating  mince-pies 
now,  and  she  starve.^  .  .  .  If  E.  has  by  chance  got  a 
flannel  waistcoat  done,  it  may  be  sent  with  the  Chrysostom 
(cloak  and  parchments  from  Troas),  and  any  letters  from 
Harrow.  .  .  .  John  seems  to  be  so  thankful  for  any  little 
attentions,  such   as  writing  for  him  and   reading  by  him 


—  1 844-]  ILLNE  SS  &^  BE  A  TH  OEJOHN  WORDS  WOR  TH.   99 


(not  to  him,  for  this  he  is  not  equal  to),  that  I  do  not  know 
how  to  leave  him. 

We  took  the  Holy  Communion  (Dec.  22)  together  this 
morning,  which  was  a  great  comfort ;  he  was  in  the  little 
room,  which  was  our  study  when  we  were  boys.  I  do 
wish,  my  dearest  wife,  you  could  have  been  with  us. 
I  know  you  are  in  spirit. 

Dec.  23,  1839. 
My  dearest  Love, — This  will  reach  you  on  Christmas 
Day.  May  God  bless  us  both  and  all  our  dear  friends  (at 
Twyford)  and  here.  .  .  .  John  had  last  night  a  delightful 
sleep,  which  literally  filled  him  brimful  of  joy  and  thank- 
fulness to  God,  ...  so  that  he  is  now  much  more  calm  and 
cheerful.  He  delights  in  having  us  with  him.  ...  I  met 
Mr.  Whewell  in  my  solitary  ride  to-day,  and  we  rode  back 
to  Cambridge  together.  He  asked  very  kindly  about  you, 
and  invited  me  to  an  evening  party  to-morrow,  but  I  can- 
not go,  I  fear.  ...  I  am  very  glad  that  you  are  making 
that  list  of  texts  ;  you  will  thus  become  a  Memnonian 
statue,  and  be  vocal  with  the  sun  on  Christmas  morning. 
I  have  been  engaged  in  collecting  texts  bearing  on  the 
Baptismal  Vow,'  and  have  been  in -great  want  of  your  pen 
and  head  very  often.  You  have  spoilt  me,  dearest,  for  a 
wise,  solitary,  severe  old  divine. 

The  next  letter,  Christmas  Eve,  talks  in  a  hopeful 
strain,  and  adds:  "  John  has  got  the  violet ;  Charles 
has  taken  it  up  to  him,  and  I  shall  nov^  go  and  see 
how  he  likes  it."  This  was  evidently  a  little  token 
of  sisterly  affection.  Alas  !  the  sky  was  soon  over- 
cast again.  Three  days  afterwards  Mrs.  Words- 
worth joined  her  husband  at  Trinity  Lodge,  there 

•'•  Probably  for  a  school  manual  on  Confirmation  soon  after- 
wards printed. 

II    2 


HARROW.  [1S36— 


being  no  hope  of  his -now  going  to  her,  and  their 
loved  brother  rapidly  sank  and  passed  away  with  the 
departing  year. 

The  following  lines  written  by  Christopher  on  the 
arrival  of  the  motherless  baby  at  Trinity  Lodge,  the 
very  day  of  his  brother's  death,  have  an  additional 
interest  from  the  fact  that  he  was  reminded  of  the 
incident  in  1885  by  the  birth  of  a  little  granddaughter 
at  Harewood,  shortly  after  his  own  wife's  death,  and 
but  a  very  few  weeks  before  his  own;  "birth  and 
death,"  as  he  said,  "  coming  to  a  house  together." 

r]\6e<;,  aSaKpiiTw  (f>aiSpov  yeXdoicra  Trpoa-coirWf 
a'\\ravcnQ<i  r   68vvaL<;,  ScofMar  e?  rjfxerepa, 

jJX^e?,  69'  rj fieri pov  ddvarov  rrevOov/xev  aSe\,0ou 
(r7]fx€poi>  eK  TovTcov  ol')^ofxevov  fMeXddpoov, 

'n  ^pecpo^,  dX\d  av  ')(alpe,  (^l\ov  k€lvou  8'  iirl  Tv/x^(p 
ware  poSov  6dXXoi<i  dvOeai  7iop(j}vpeoi<i. 

Dec.  31,  1839. 

For  a  tribute  to  the  memory  of  John  we  may 
refer  the  reader  to'  the  "  Memoirs  of  W.  Words- 
worth," and  also  to  the  Preface  to  the  "  Corre- 
spondence of  Dr.  Bentley,"  edited  by  Christopher 
Wordsworth,  for  a  biographical  sketch.  A  beautiful 
bust  of  him  by  Weekes  occupies  a  conspicuous  place 
in  Trinity  Chapel.  An  oil-painting  of  no  great 
merit,  but  evidently  a  fair  likeness,  used  to  hang  in 
the  Bishop  of  Lincoln's  study."     It  represented  him 

*  The  Bishop  of  St.  Andrew's  has  the  i)oitrait  (in  oils)  also  ol 
the  three  brothers,  taken  before  they  went  to  college.  This  is 
now  at  Salisbury. 


—  1 844-]        CANDIDATE  FOR  PROFESSORSHIP  loi 

with  the  dark  colouring  and  square  brow  with  which 
those  who  knew  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln  will  be 
familiar,  but  with  a  serious  and  thoughtful  expression, 
less  often,  we  should  imagine,  varied  by  high  spirits 
and  animation,  yet  full  of  feeling  and  sensibility. 

In  1843  C*  Wordsworth  met  with  what  was  per- 
haps the  great  disappointment  of  a  life,  so  far  singu- 
larly free  from  troubles — the  failure  to  obtain  the 
Regius  Professorship  of  Divinity  at  Cambridge,  to 
which  the  followins:  letter  refers  : — 

Harrow,  Oct.  6,  1842. 
My  dear  Mr.  Watson, —  ...  A  contest,  as  such,  is  clearly 
very  undesirable  on  many  accounts,  i.e.  for  the  sake  of 
my  father,  of  Harrow,  and  myself;  and  a  contest  with  Dr. 
Mill  is  also  very  inconvenient.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
object  itself  is  the  one  which,  as  far  as  anything  human 
can  be,  has  been  the  aim  of  my  life,  as  that  for  which  I 
most  wished  to  live,  and  to  spend  my  life  upon.  Besides 
this,  I  have  misgivings  whether  health  will  stand  my  present 
occupation.  .  .  .  The  issue  is,  that  on  the  whole  I  think 
it  best  to  enter  the  field. 

To  THE  Same. 

Harroiv,  Feb.  i,  1843. 
I  returned  last  night  from  Cambridge,  where  I  had 
arrived  in  the  morning,  for  the  reading  of  the  Prselections. 
Dr.  Mill  read  a  most  admirable  dissertation  on  Hebrews, 
cap.  vi.  (the  beginning).  Dr.  Ollivant's  was  the  third 
chapter  of  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans,  and  his  argument 
was  Justification  by  Faith — the  Eleventh  Article,  and 
a  reconciliation  of  S.  Paul  and  S.  James.  He  ended  with 
an  eulogy  on  Turton.  .  .  .  The  election  is  this  morning. 

The  next  letter  announces  Dr.  Ollivant's  election, 
and  winds  up  with  expressions  of  gratitude  to  Mr. 


HARROW.  [.1856— 


Watson,  but  without  a  single  word  of  personal 
annoyance  or  disappointment. 

On  the  2ist  of  September  of  this  year  (1843)  ^i^ 
eldest  son,  John  (so  named  after  both  his  uncles),  was 
born.  Two  daughters,  Elizabeth  and  Priscilla,  had 
preceded  him,  and  a  third  daughter,  Mary,  was  born 
at  Leamington  in  the  spring  of  1845.^  His  literary 
offspring  had  even  at  this  early  date  been  numerous, 
and  we  may  especially  mention  a  Collection  of  Private 
Prayers,  a  Confirmation  Manual,  ajid  two  volumes  of 
Sermons  preached  in  Harrow  School,  and  a  still 
more  important  work,  "  Theophilus  Anglicanus " 
(see  chapter  on  Literary  Work).  Some  idea  may 
be  formed  from  these  volumes  of  the  work  he 
endeavoured  to  do  at  Harrow  on  its  constr2ictive 
side.  Of  the  difficulty  which  he  had  in  carrying 
out  needful  reforms  fewer  memorials  survive.  ' '  Many 
a  blow  and  biting  sculpture,"  as  we  know,  is  needed 
to  bring  a  great  character  to  perfection  ;  but  it  is 
hardly  necessary,  perhaps,  to  treasure  up  the 
chipped  fragments  of  the  marble  ;  and  our  readers 
will  forgive  us  if  we  do  not  give  further  details 
here  of  events  which  can  have  comparatively  little 
interest  for  the  present  generation. 

In  1844  he  was  offered  a  canonry  of  Westminster 
by  Sir  Robert  Peel,  and  a  new  and  congenial  field 
of  labour  was  thus  opened  to  him. 

Before   quitting  the  subject   of  Harrow  we  may 

''  His  other  three  children— Susanna,  Christopher,  and  Dora — 
were  born  at  Westminster. 


— 1844]        LETTERS  FROM  HARROW  PUPILS.  103 

mention  that  on  learning  that  a  testimonial  to  him- 
self was  contemplated,  and  that  subscriptions  for 
such  a  purpose  were  being  raised,  he  begged  that 
the  money  might  go  to  the  fund  for  the  school 
chapel,  which  had  been  opened  in  1839,  and  the 
effect  of  which  had,  as  we  have  seen,  been  most 
beneficial  to  the  boys.  The  following  letter  from 
C.  S.  Currer,  now  C.  S.  Roundell,  Esq.,  M.P.,  may 
be  inserted  here  : — 

Harrozv,  April  15,  1845. 
My  dear  Sir, — I  have  great  pleasure  in  informing  you 
that  the  organ  was  erected  in  the  school  chapel  during 
the  Easter  holidays,  and  played  for  the  first  time,  publicly, 
on  Sunday,  the  6th  of  April,  being  the  first  after  our 
return  here  from  the  holidays.  I  may  truly  say  that  it 
has  given  universal  satisfaction,  and  everybody  seems 
greatly  pleased  with  its  tone  and  power,  which  is  fully 
equal  to  the  size  of  the  building.  The  habit  of  joining 
in  the  responses  has  in  a  great  measure  paved  the  way 
towards  that  of  singing  also,  and  I  have  no  doubt  that  in 
the  course  of  a  few  Sundays  all  will  as  readily  take  part  in 
it,  though  we  greatly  miss  the  presence  of  Mrs.  Words- 
worth in  setting  the  example. 

One  of  his  best-known  pupils  writes : — 

Whatever  (if  any)  good  there  has  been  in  my  life  is 
mainly  due  to  him  and  to  his  teaching. 

I  fear  I  was  not  a  good  specimen  of  a  Harrow  boy,  but 
he  always  had  such  a  sympathy  with  me  and  so  clear  an 
insight  into  my  character,  that,  though  I  have  not  seen 
him  very  often  of  late  years,  he  has  always  been  the 
master  of  my  soul. 

The  very  spot  where  he  once  said  to  me  a  dozen  words 


I04  HARROW.  [1836— 

whkh  have  been  the  warning  and  support  of  a  lifetime,  is 
as  clearly  impressed  on  my  mind  as  it  was  more  than  forty 
years  ago.  Many  others,  no  doubt,  could  say  the  same  of 
other  incidents  or  of  teaching  equally  fruitful — much  more 
fruitful,  I  hope,  but  equally  useful. 

From  a  near  Relative. 

We  saw  one  of  your  pupils  at  C ,  Mr.  F.     He  spoke 

with  much  regard  and  gratitude  for  your  care  of  himself 
during  his  illness.  ...  I  did  not  remember  before  to  tell 
you  a  little  fact  which  I  happened  to  hear,  and  which,  I 
think,  will  give  you  pleasure — that  two  of  your  boys  who 
are  companions  and  sharers  of  one  room  (I  do  not  know 
if  chums  is  a  Harrow  word,  but  that  is  what  they  used  to 
call  them  at  Eton)  are  in  the  daily  habit  of  reading  the 
lessons  together.  This  seems  to  me  a  satisfactory  proof  of 
the  quiet  working  of  a  spirit  which  it  has  been  the  great 
object  of  your  Harrow  life  to  engraft  and  to  improve. 

A  father  writes  : — 

To  you,  my  dear  sir,  my  wife  and  I  feel  indebted  for 
advantages  of  high  value  to  our  son,  from  your  superin- 
tendence at  Harrow,  and  to  it  we  shall  ever  gratefully 
refer  as  having  been,  under  Providence,  instrumental  for 
his  solid  good  and  our  abiding  comfort. 

It  must  have  been  some  consolation  amid  the 
many  trials  of  his  Harrow  life  to  receive  letters  like 
these,  and  to  see  from  the  progress  of  the  boys 
themselves  that  the  effort,  severe  as  it  was,  had 
been  well  worth  making. 

Among  the  Harrovians  who  seem  to  have  profited 
most  by  the  influence  of  the  head-master  we  find 
the  well-known  names  of  the  Right  Hon.  A.  J.  B. 
Beresford  Hope,  Sir  Thomas  Wade,  her  Majesty's 
Minister    in     China,      Archdeacon     Sanctuary,     J. 


— 1844]     PECUNIARY  LOSSES  AND  ILL-HEALTH.         105 

Nicholson,  Esq.,  Hon.  Douglas  Gordon,  Canon  of 
Salisbury,  William  George  Spottiswoode,  the  late 
deeply  lamented  President  of  the  Royal  Society, 
and  his  brother  George,  C.  S.  Roundell,  Esq.,  M.P., 
R.  P.  Long,  Esq.,  M.P.  ;  and  many  others  doubtless 
might  be  recorded. 

We  must  not  omit  in  this  place  to  mention  the 
names  of  the  Rev.  T.  H.  Steel,  G.  F.  Harris,  Esq., 
and  Rev.  W.  Oxenham,  Dn  W^ordsworth's  colleagues 
at  Harrow,  to  whose  friendship  he  owed  so  much, 
who,  we  believe,  shared  his  pecuniary  losses,  and 
whose  names  long  remained  household  words  in  his 
family. 

That  those  pecuniary  losses  (which  were  increased 
by  the  fact  that  he  gave  up  having  boarders  in  his 
own  house,  as  he  considered  it  disadvantageous  to 
the  school)  were  considerable  there  can  be  no 
doubt,  and  they  had  to  be  met,  as  far  as  pos- 
sible, by  the  retrenchment  of  personal  expenses 
and  luxuries.  His  own  health,  too,  had  been  greatly 
undermined.  During  all  this  period  of  his  life 
he  suffered,  not  from  any  dangerous  complaint, 
but  from  that  sensitive  state  of  nerves  to  which 
scholars  and  thinkers  are  peculiarly  liable.  Part  of 
the  interval  between  Harrow  and  Westminster  was 
spent  at  Leamington  under  the  care  of  the  cele- 
brated Dr.  Jephson,  who  put  him  on  a  regimen 
which  enabled  him  in  some  degree  to  recover  his 
physical  health.  He  would  probably  have  broken 
down  completely  had  it  not  been  for  his  wife's  affec- 


io6 


HARRO IV. 


[1844 


tionate  cheerfulness,  his  own  habits  of  early  rising, 
spare  feeding,  especially  in  the  working  hours  of  the 
day,  and  regular  exercise  in  the  open  air  (both 
morning  and  afternoon),  a  habit  which  he  kept  up 
to  the  very  last  week  of  his  long  and  wonderfully 
energetic  life. 

At  this  point  we  may  make  a  pause  before  we 
contemplate  him  in  his  new  sphere  as  the  member 
of  a  Collegiate  Chapter,  and  mingling  in  the  complex 
and  varied  life  of  the  great  city  and  the  great  world 
beyond  the  sound  of  the  Abbey  bells. 


CHAPTER  V. 

EARLY  WESTMINSTER  LIFE. 

As  we  mentioned  at  the  close  of  the  foregoing 
chapter,  a  canonry  of  Westminster  was  offered  in  the 
autumn  of  1844  to  Dr.  Wordsworth  by  Sir  Robert 
Peel.  This  canonry  had  been  previously  offered  to 
his  father,  who  had  retired  from  Trinity,  in  recogni- 
tion of  his  services,  and  at  his  request  was  transferred 
to  his  son.  The  Deanery  of  Peterborough  was 
also  offered  to  the  father  by  the  same  Prime 
Minister,  and  declined. 

This  was  an  instance  of  the  generosity  of  Sir  R. 
Peel's  disposition,  for,  as  we  shall  shortly  see,  the 
new  Canon's  political  views  differed  considerably 
from  his  own,  and  the  troubles  at  Harrow  had,  we 
believe,  been  felt  to  some  extent  in  the  Premier's 
own  family. 

The  following  letter  was  written  at  the  time : — 

Harroiv,  Oct.  4,  1S44. 

My  very  dear  Mr.  Watson,— There  is  indeed 
abundant  reason  for  thankfulness  for  the  blessing  we  have 
received  from  our  Heavenly  Father,  and  through  our 
earthly  one  ;  and  we  heartily  say  Amen  to  your  kind  wishes 
and  prayers. 

Poor  old  Jones  ^  was  the  first  person  connected  with  the 

'  Formerly  Mr.  Watson's  butler,  then  a  verger  in  the  Abbey. 


io8 


EARLY  WESTMINSTER  LIFE. 


[1844- 


Abbey  who  heard  the  news.  On  entering  the  church 
yesterday  afternoon  he  was  at  the  door,  and  he  received 
the  intelligence  with  his  most  benignant  smiles.  He 
placed  me  in  a  seat  next  the  canon  (all  are  canons '  now) 
in  residence,  who  was  Mr.  Temple  Frere.  After  service  we 
had  a  greeting ;  and  you  may  be  sure  he  was  right  glad  to 
hear  the  tidings  for  our  sake.  I  also  saw  Mr.  Repton  ; 
called  on  the  Dean,  Bishop  Monk  (one  of  the  canons), 
Dr.  Williamson  (Head  Master  of  Westminster)  ;  they  were 
not  to  be  found  (the  first  two  are  out  of  town),  but  Mr. 
Temple  Frere  tells  me  that  no  one  at  Westminster  had 
any  idea  how  the  vacancy  would  be  filled  up.  I  had  a 
very  paternal  letter  from  our  diocesan  and  visitor,  the 
archbishop,  yesterday,  which  shows  that  he  was  in  the 
secret,  perhaps  as  a  cause. 

At  half-past  five  I  called  in  Whitehall ;  the  Premier 
received  me  very  graciously,  and  said  that  he  was  not  in 
the  habit  of  making  promises,  but  that  he  had  long  wished 
and  intended  to  do  what  he  has  now  done,  both  for  the 
ex-master's  sake  and  mine.  Oh  !  that  you  were  in  Park 
Street  [where  Mr.  Watson  had  formerly  lived  for  many 
years].  .  .  .  We  are  becoming  anxious  as  to  the  hands  into 
which  Harrow  may  come.^ 

The  spirit  of  boys  and  masters  is  excellent ;  the  former 
have  now  taken  to  respond  audibly  in  our  church,  chapel, 
and  school  prayers,  at  which  we  rejoice  exceedingly. 
Have  you  any  interest  with  the  vicar  so  as  to  influence  his 
vote  } 

Yours  very  affectionately, 

Chr.  Wordsworth. 


*  This  is  interesting  as  marking  the  transition  from  "  preben- 
dary" to  "  canon"  in  ordinary  English.  The  change  arose  out 
of  the  provisions  of  the  new  Cathedral  Reform  Act. 

^  These  anxieties  were  happily  soon  removed  by  the  appoint- 
ment of  Dr.  VauL'han. 


—  1850.]  RESIDEXCE  AT  WESTMINSTER.  109 

To  THE  Same. 

Oct.  25,  1844. 
To-morrow  we  are  going  to  Westminster,  and  I  hope 
to  be  installed  in  the  morning/  .  .  .  When  we  are 
domiciled  at  Westminster,  which  must  be  our  home  for 
three  months  in  the  year,  and  I  would  hope  will  be  for 
more  than  six,  in  what  way,  do  you  think,  could  we 
be  (to  speak  briefly)  of  w^j-^  use?  I  mean  in  parochial 
and  National  Society  matters.  My  desire  would  be  to 
keep  up  my  schoolmaster  habits  to  a  certain  extent,  i.e.  as 
far  as  is  consistent  with  other  professional  duties.  .  .  . 
I  am  quite  unfit  for  financial  matters,  or  to  take  part  in 
committees,  &c.,  &c.,  but  perhaps  I  might  do  some  little 
good  if  you  would  set  me  to  teach  any  young  future  school- 
masters Latin,  or  to  examine  them  in  the  Catechism.  Quo 
jusseris,  ibo.  As  I  must  not  cross  this  sheet,  and  zvill  not 
cross  to  another,  I  remain  from  the  bottom  of  my  heart 
and  my  page, 

Yours  affectionately, 

C.  Wordsworth. 

It  being  the  custom  for  a  single  canon  only  to  be 
in  residence  at  one  time,  most  of  the  official  houses 
at  Westminster  were  let,  and  one  reserved  as  a  resi- 
dentiary's  lodging,  each  canon  moving  out  at  the  end 
of  his  term  to  make  room  for  the  family  of  the 
incoming  canon  at  the  commencement  of  his  resi- 
dence. Dr.  Wordsworth  made  a  point  of  occupying 
the  house  assigned  to  his  canonry,  and  refused  to 
renew  the  lease  of  it.  His  example  has  been  for 
many  years  generally  followed. 

A  member  of  the  Bishop's  family  writes  : — 

*  This  was  written  within  a  few  days  of  his  thirty-seventh  birth- 
day, October  30. 


EARLY  WESTMINSTER  LIFE.  [1844— 


There  was  something  very  fascinating  in  our  life  at 
Westminster,  to  which  we  moved  in  1845,  just  when  my 
earliest  recollections  begin.  We  had  the  house  now  occu- 
pied by  Canon  Prothero,  which  might  easily  be  known  by 
the  stained-glass  window  with  the  inscription  "  Domus  Dei 
porta  coeli/'  and  others.  This  glass  was  put  in  by  Mr. 
Powell  under  my  father's  directions,  and  the  inscriptions 
chosen  by  the  latter/  But  this  was  some  years  later  than 
the  time  of  which  I  am  now  writing.  The  house  had  pre- 
viously been  occupied  by  Mr.  James  Bandinel,  who  had  left 
behind  some  relics  of  himself  in  the  old  encaustic  tiles  em- 
bedded in  the  wall,  and  it  had  the  further  interest  of  having 
once  been  visited  and  slept  in  by  Washington  Irving.  There 
were  the  handsome  panelled  sitting-rooms  and  carved 
chimney-pieces  so  characteristic  of  old  collegiate  houses. 
We  had  a  great  affection  for  the  fable  of  the  Fox  and  the 
Crane,  which  was  carved  in  wood  over  the  drawing-room 
fire  (the  dining-room  would,  perhaps,  have  been  more 
appropriate).  The  study  had  a  door  which  opened  on  to 
the  college  garden  (the  old  infirmary  garden  of  the 
monks),  and  I  still  remember  the  brilliancy  of  the  mari- 
golds in  the  little  bed  in  front ;  the  tall  old  wall  where  the 
jessamine  and  lily  of  the  valley  blossomed  kindly  despite  of 
London  soot ;  the  tower  of  the  old  Jewel-house  a  little  to 
the  east ;  the  four  lawns,  divided  by  paths,  where  the  canons 
of  Westminster  and  their  families  used  to  take  their  Sun- 
day stroll  ;  the  Jacobean  dormitory  of  the  school  on  the 
western  side.  The  lazy,  mellow  sound  of  the  "  five-and- 
twenty  minutes  bell  "  before  the  three  o'clock  service  seems 
to  haunt  these  gardens  as  naturally  as   the  note  of  black- 

*  One  of  these,  the  words  of  St.  Chrysostom, 

seems  too  beautiful  to  be  left  unrecorded.     Another  was 

^'Hospes  in  his  foribus  paulum  dum  sisteris  era, 
Orantis  fidci  coelica  porta  patet." 


—  1850.]  PREACHING  IN  THE  ABBEY.  in 

bird   or   thrush   would   that    of    some    favoured    country- 
home. 

It  was  a  very  fortunate  thing  for  a  man  v/ith  my  father's 
highly  susceptible  nervous  system  that  even  in  the  heart  of 
London  he  could  have  so  quiet  an  abode  situated  in  the 
inner  or  little  cloister.  It  was  really  quieter  than  many 
country  places,  the  front  door  being  200  yards  distant 
from  the  entrance  to  Dean's  Yard. 

His  appointment  to  the  Canonry  of  Westminster  in  1844 
occurred  just  at  a  time  when  the  old  order  of  things  was 
being  gradually  displaced  for  a  new  one.  The  twelve 
canons  were  to  be  reduced  to  six  ;  and  the  immediate 
effect  of  this  was  to  throw  a  very  disproportioned  amount 
,  of  work  upon  him  The  senior  canons  were  not  disposed 
to  take  more  than  the  stipulated  month  apiece  ;  this  left  my 
father  with  many  a  dreary  February  and  hot  July  and 
August  to  be  struggled  with  alone.  Preaching  every  Sun- 
day two  sermons  in  the  Abbey,  which,  as  he  used  to  say, 
was  "  like  preaching  to  three  congregations  at  once  "  (one  in 
the  Choir,  one  in  each  of  the  Transepts),  on  an  exhausting 
day  in  the  height  of  summer,  was  no  light  task  even  to  a 
man  of  his  exceptional  powers,  and  the  agonies  of  neuralgia 
he  used  to  suffer,  and  the  nervous  depression  which  accom- 
panied it,  have  left  a  strong  impression  on  our  memories. 

While  speaking  of  his  preaching  in  the  Abbey  we 
may  mention  that  he  took  great  pains  with  the  choir 
boys,  of  whom  he  had  a  class  regularly  on  Sunday 
afternoons  after  service. 

We  have,  however,  been  somewhat  anticipating 
and  must  now  return  to  the  year  1845.  The  ex- 
tracts which  follow  refer  in  part  to  a  subject  which 
occupied  him  much  at  this  time,  the  question  of  the 
Maynooth  Endowment  Grant. 

We  must  remind  the  reader  that  a  Bill  had  been 


112  EARLY  WESTMINSTER  LIFE.  [1844— 

recently  brought  in  by  Sir  Robert  Peel,  and  sup- 
ported by  Mr.  Gladstone,  then  member  for  Newark, 
and  others,  to  augment  the  Government  subsidy 
to  Maynooth  from  9000/.  per  annum  to  about 
27,000/.,  to  change  the  annual  grant  into  a  perma- 
nent one,  to  incorporate  the  trustees,  and  provide  for 
the  maintenance  of  the  fabric. 

Up  to  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century  the 
Irish  priesthood  had  been  for  the  most  part  educated 
abroad,  and  if  not  higher  in  the  social  scale  than 
at  present,  had  at  least  gained  some  polish  and 
enlargement  of  mind  by  residence  in  France  and 
Belgium. 

Maynooth  had  originally  been  founded  in  1795, 
at  a  time  when  religious  education  in  France  was 
threatened  by  the  Revolution ;  but  nevertheless 
its  tendencies  were  popular  and  unfavourable  to 
loyalty  almost  from  the  first,  as  was  confessed  by 
O'Connell  when  examined  before  the  House  of 
Commons  in  1825. 

More  than  this,  "  the  Irish  Roman  Catholic 
Hierarchy,"  in  the  words  of  Lord  Castlereagh,  was 
"  known  to  be  in  a  state  of  more  complete  and  un- 
qualified dependence  on  a  foreign  authority  than  any 
other  Catholic  Church  now  subsisting  in  Europe." 
The  whole  executive  of  the  college  was  virtually  in 
the  hands  of  the  bishops,  who  were  in  the  hands 
of  the  Pope  ;  the  only  commentary  on  Scripture 
in  use  as  a  class-book  was  from  the  pen  of  a 
Jesuit.     "The   British  nation,"  said  Canon  Words- 


-i8so.]  PAMPHLETS  ON  MAYNOOTH.  113 


worth,     "  pays     for     Maynooth,     and     the     Pope 
governs  it/' 

The  pamphlets  which  he  wrote  on  this  occasion 
have  a  special  interest,  owing  to  the  state  of  Ireland 
in  our  own  day,  which  makes  such  passages  as  the 
following  seem  almost  prophetic  : — 

The  higher  classes  of  the  laity  will,  no  doubt,  always 
enjoy  the  benefit  of  the  salutary  influences  of  liberal  educa- 
tion and  polished  society.  But  this  is  not  the  case  with 
the  poor  and  illiterate.  To  them  their  priest  is  everything  ; 
and  when  we  remember  the  tremendous  powers  that  are 
wielded  by  the  Roman  Catholic  priesthood  in  the  rite  of 
confession  and  in  excommunication,  the  question  of  the 
character  and  tendency  of  their  education  becomes  one  of 
the  most  momentous  importance.  And  when  Maynooth, 
which  has  now  *'  begun  to  be  felt " ''  shall  be  felt  more  deeply 
and  extensively,  is  there  not  the  strongest  ground  to  fear 
that  its  results  will  be  seen  in  rural  districts,  and  in  densely 
populated  towns,  in  the  outbreak  of  such  a  spirit  of  anarchy 
and  outrage,  as  the  poiueriuhich  has  fostered  and  strengthened 
it  zvill  attempt  too  late  and  in  vain  to  repress  ? 

This  pamphlet,  and  another  which  followed  it, 
created  a  considerable  sensation  at  the  time,  and 
produced  a  reply  from  Lord  John  Manners,  which 
elicited  a  third  pamphlet  on  the  same  subject. 
These  three  pamphlets,  which  were  published  anony- 
mously in  1845,  will  be  found  full  of  interest  to 
those  who,  in  the  present  crisis,  are  interested  in 
Irish  affairs.      Viewed    in    the   light  of    1887,  Mr. 

Quarterly  Review,  1841,  "  Mayiiooth,  the  Crown  and  the 
Country,"  p.  81. 


114  EARLY  WESTMINSTER  LIFE.  [1844— 

Gladstone's  words  in  the   House  of   Commons  at 
this  time  are  fraught  with  meaning  : — 

I  think  this  measure  important,  most  of  all  important 
with  regard  to  the  prijiciples  which  it  involves.  I  am  very 
far  indeed  from  saying  that  it  virtually  decides  upon  the 
payment  of  the  Roman  Catholic  priests  of  Ireland  by  the 
State ;  but  I  do  not  deny  that  it  disposes  of  the  religions 
objections  to  that  measure.  I  mean,  that  he  who  assents  to 
this  Bill,  shall,  in  my  judgment,  no  longer  he  in  a  condition 
to  plead  religious  objections  to  such  a  project. 

The  following  letter  from  Mr.  Gladstone  will  be 
read  with  interest : — 

13,  Carlton  House  Terr  ace  ^ 
April  II,  1845. 
My  dear  Wordsworth, — I  had  received  your  pam- 
phlet, had  read  it,  and  been  much  struck  by  it  before  I 
was  aware  whose  gift  it  was.  Notwithstanding  the  solid 
character  of  its  matter,  I  have  come  to  the  conclusion  that 
it  is  my  duty  to  support  the  Bill,  with  my  eyes  open  as  to 
the  consequences  in  argument,  and  the  possible  results  in 
fact.' 

So  much  of  the  reasons  that  have  influenced  me  as  I 
may  be  enabled  to  express  by  word  of  mouth,  it  is  my 
intention  to  state  in  the  House  of  Commons  to-night. 
Meantime  farewell,  and  may  God  preserve  to  the  Church 
her  mission  and  her  destiny. 

I  remain  always  most  sincerely  yours, 

W.  E.  Gladstone. 

'  Mr.  Gladstone  (President  of  the  Board  of  Trade)  left  the 
Ministry  early  in  1845,  because  the  views  of  Government  on  the 
Maynooth  (irant,  were  at  variance  with  his  formerly  published 
work  on  Church  and  State.  {See  his  speech  of  February  4, 
1845,  in  Hansard's  Parliamentary  Debates.) 


—  i8so.]        LETTERS  TO  MRS.   WORDSWORTH.  115 

I  am  sorry  to  see  you  do  not  say  when  you  are  to  come 
to  occupy  your  residence  at  Westminster. 
Rev.  Chr,  Wordsworth. 

To  Mrs.  Wordsworth. 

Biixted,  April  19,  1845. 
.  .  .  Yesterday  at  half-past  nine  I  went  down  to  the 
Abbey  ;  the  Canon  in  residence  is  Lord  John  Thynne,  which 
was  very  convenient,  as  I  was  thus  enabled  to  arrange 
matters  about  the  house  .  .  .  After  visiting  the  house  .  . 
I  v/alked  to  Carlton  House  Terrace,  where  I  called  on 
Gladstone,  with  whom  I  sat  about  an  hour  and  a  half 
and  was  very  much  interested  with  my  visit,  which  was 
entirely  on  public,  Church,  and  State  matters.  He  was 
very  agreeable,  and  we  got  on  extremely  well,  but  I  fear 
he  is  quite  stunned  with  the  din  of  the  popular  cry  of  the 
day  in  the  House  of  Commons.  He  is  much  to  be  pitied. 
If  he  had  one  or  two  to  work  with  him,  the  country  might 
yet  be  saved.  I  then  returned  to  evening  service,  so  it  was 
quite  a  Church  and  State  day. 

C.  Wordsworth. 

To  THE  Same. 

Bedford  Square,  May  30,  1845. 
.  .  .  Yesterday  morning  I  went  to  the  Abbey  service 
after  which  I  visited  the  house.  ...  I  walked  from 
Westminster  to  Bedford  Square,*  where  I  found  your 
letter,  which  gave  me  great  pleasure,  for  your  and  dear 
Johnnie's  sake.  ...  I  walked  down  again  to  West- 
minster. .  .  .  After  service  .  .  .  went  to  Athenaeum,  saw 
Bishop  of  Exeter,  Dr.  Dealtry,  and  Archdeacon  Hall 
and  Mr.  Merivale  there ;  drove  home,  dressed  for  Mr. 
Matheson's  party  of  National  Society  people — went  there 
with  Mr.  Craig,  there  were  about  100  people  at  the  dinner; 
talked  a  little  there  with  Gladstone,  Churton,  Mr.  Moody, 
Archdeacon  Marriott,  Mr.  Abraham  of  Eton,  Mr.Colquhoun 

®  The  residence  of  Mr,  Frere. 
I   2 


ii6  EARLY  WESTMINSTER  LIFE.  [1844— 


(whose  speeches  you  will  see  in  our  second  pamphlet),  with 
whom  I  am  going  to  breakfast  to-morrow  ;  there  was  also 
Dr.  Hook  there,  Archdeacon  Manning,  Judge  Coleridge, 
&c.  Some  speeches  after  dinner — good,  bad,  and  in- 
different. The  world  of  Church  practice  seems  to  me  a 
very  miserable  impression  of  the  world  of  Church  theory. 
After  Mr.  Colquhoun's  to-morrow,  I  go  to  Mr.  Percival's. 
On  Sunday,  you  know,  I  preach  at  Portman  Chapel. 

I  have  put  the  MS.  of  the  Journal'  into  John  Murray's 
hands. 

To  THE  Same. 

Bedford  Squars,  June  5. 

.  .  .  Yesterday  I  was  at  the  Abbey  service,  then  at  a 
Chapter,  then  here  again,  then  down  in  Pall  Mall  for  a 
meeting  of  the  London  Diocesan  School  Board,  Bishop 
Short  in  the  chair,  in  the  absence  of  the  Bishop  of  London, 
who  feels  deeply  the  present  state  of  public  affairs,  and  is 
not  well.  The  meeting  was  well  attended.  ...  I  moved 
one  of  the  resolutions.  Mr.  Norris  was  there,  and  I  am 
engaged  to  go  and  see  him  next  week,  when  Mr.  Watson 
will  be  back  at  Clapton.  This  morning  I  am  going  to  the 
Archbishop  of  Armagh's  (the  Primate)  to  hear  a  little 
about  Ireland,  and  whether  anything  can  be  done  for  the 
Irish  Church,  which  every  one  here,  Churchmen  as  well  as 
Radicals,  seem  to  have  given  up,  alas  !  This  is  a  sad  sub- 
ject, my  dearest,  and  it  fills  one  with  grief  to  hear  the 
language  held  by  all  concerning  our  sister  Church. 

Bedford  Square,  June  6. 
Yesterday  after  breakfast  I  went  to  the  Primate's  (Arch- 
bishop of  Armagh),  where  I  found  Mr.  Colquhoun  and 
Mr.  Palmer.  The  Primate  is  a  remarkably  fine  old  man, 
of  very  gentle  and  paternal  manner,  and  received  us  with 
great  kindness.  I  seemed  to  myself  to  see  in  his 
countenance  the  sunset  of  the  Irish  Church  :  he  was  so 

'  "  Diary  in  France." 


—1850.]    DEATH  OF  THE  ''MASTER  OF  TRINITY r      117 

calm  and  so  resigned.  We  remained  about  an  hour,  and 
the  result  of  our  conversation  was  that  he  charged  us  ^  to 
write  a  memorial  concerning  measures  which  may  be  taken 
for  the  support  of  the  Church  ;  and  I  am  desired  to  draw 
up  this  paper,  which  I  shall  submit  first  to  Mr.  Colquhoun 
and  Mr.  Palmer  before  it  goes  to  the  Primate.  May  God 
grant  us  His  grace  and  direction  to  serve  Him  in  the  right 
way.  I  then  went  to  a  Chapter — then  to  the  house,  where 
they  seem  to  be  getting  on,  though  not  very  fast — and  then 

to  the  Abbey  ;  and  then  to  Mrs. 's  garden  party,  which 

was  very  fully  attended.  I  stayed  a  very  short  time, 
having  very  little  love  for  such  things,  in  such  a  place  at 
such  a  time.  I  hope  you  will  not  wish  to  indulge  in  such 
anti-ecclesiastical  vagaries.  I  hope  to  send  all  the  Journal 
to  the  printers  to-morrow. 

Early  in  the  year  1846  the  good  old  "  Master  of 
Trinity,"  to  use  the  name  by  which  he  was  best 
known,  was  called  to  his  rest.  He  died  at  Buxted, 
on  the  2nd  of  February,  1846,  an  anniversary  which 
his  son  often  recalled,  and  which  seemed  to  him  a 
true  "  Presentation  in  the  Temple,"  a  beautiful  day 
for  the  memory  of  a  consecrated  old  age.  His 
son  Charles,  who  had  resigned  his  second  Master- 
ship at  Winchester  at  the  end  of  the  previous  year, 
partly  on  account  of  failing  health,  and  partly  in 
order  that  he  might  live  with  his  father  in  his 
declining  years,  was  with  him  at  the  time  of  his 
death  ;  and  afterwards,  for  the  sake  of  old  associa- 

1  This  was  a  favourite  phrase.  He  often  used  to  speak  of 
anything  he  had  written  as  if  his  wife  had  been  joint  author. 
After  his  edition  of  the  Greek  Testament  had  come  out,  his 
expression,  in  referring  to  any  passage,  perhaps  would  be,  "  You 
will  find  that  in  Mrs.  Wordsworth's  Commentary." 


ii8  EARLY  WESTMINSTER  LIFE.  [1844— 

tions,  returned  to  Winchester,  where  he  took  a 
house,  only  however  to  occupy  it  for  a  few  months, 
before  he  was  called  to  serve  in  Scotland,  as  Warden 
of  Trinity  College,  Glenalmond,  which  had  been 
founded  mainly  through  the  exertions  of  two  of  his 
old  friends  and  private  pupils  at  Christ  Church,  Mr. 
W.  E.  Gladstone  and  Mr.  James  Hope,  afterwards 
Hope-Scott  of  Abbotsford. 

Christopher  Wordsworth  seems  to  have  preserved 
every  fragment  of  his  father's  handwriting.  The 
letters  and  little  notes  with  the  characters  growing 
weaker  and  more  tremulous  as  time  went  on, 
are  full  of  affection  for  all  his  three  sons,  and 
interest  in  whatever  concerned  them ;  literary  criti- 
cisms of  their  work  ("  Theophilus  Anglicanus" 
more  particularly  seems  to  have  had  special  pains 
bestowed  upon  it  both  by  the  "  Master "  and  by 
Joshua  Watson)  ;  pages  full  of  erudition,  brightened 
up  occasionally  by  a  few  loving  words  to  his  daughter- 
in-law,  and  pretty  little  messages  about  his  grand- 
children. An  almost  solitary  old  age  never  made  him 
selfish.  His  affection  for  the  household  at  Rydal,  and 
pride  in  his  more  distinguished  brother,  transpire 
throughout  his  correspondence  ;  while  his  generosity, 
especially  to  his  own  college,  was  all  the  more 
remarkable,  because  in  early  life  he  had  had  to  prac- 
tise habits  of  thrift  and  self-denial.  One  of  his  last 
acts  was  a  bequest  of  200/.  to  the  Fund  of  which  we 
are  now  about  to  speak. 

One  of  the  first  undertakings  which  the  new  Canon 


—1850.]    WESTMINSTER  SPIRITUAL  AID  FUND.         119 

of  Westminster  helped  to  originate  was  the  "  West- 
minster Spiritual  Aid  Fund, ' '  of  which  he  was  the  secre- 
tary, Mr.  W.  P.  Wood,  afterwards  Lord  Hatherley, 
being  the  treasurer.  The  original  prospectus  of  the 
Westminster  Spiritual  Aid  Fund  says  that  "  the 
effect  of  recent  improvements  in  other  parts  of 
London  having  been  greatly  to  increase  the  number 
of  its  poor,  its  present  church  accommodation 
is  not  more  than  7500,  and  from  recent  statistical 
inquiries  it  appears  that  there  are  12,527  children 
under  twelve  years  of  age  not  attending  any  school, 
and  its  general  spiritual  condition  may  be  further 
inferred  from  the  fact  that  more  than  iioo  shops 
in  it  a7^e  usually  open  on  the  Lord's  Day^ 
Those  who  only  know  Westminster  now  will  have 
a  very  imperfect  idea  of  what  it  was  between 
forty  and  fifty  years  ago.  The  Abbey,  itself  still 
unrestored,  was  surrounded  by  low,  mean  houses. 
Victoria  Street  was  still  unbuilt,  the  Broad  Sanc- 
tuary and  Dean's  Yard  presented  a  sordid  and 
discreditable  appearance,  very  different  from  the 
well-built,  light,  and  spacious  scene  with  which  we 
are  familiar.  But  the  spiritual  condition  of  West- 
minster was  but  feebly  typified  by  the  external 
aspect  of  its  crooked,  dirty,  crowded,  and  uninviting 
streets.  In  1846  the  two  parishes  of  St.  Margaret 
and  St.  John,  held  by  Canons  of  Westminster,  had 
a  joint  population  of  52,000  souls. 

In  order  to  counteract  these  evils,  five  districts 
were    formed    in    addition  to   the    two    left    to    the 


I20  EARLY  WESTMINSTER  LIFE.  [1844— 

respective  parish  churches ;  and  it  was  to  obtain 
churches,  schools,  parsonages,  and  clergy  for  these 
that  the  promoters  of  the  Spiritual  Aid  Fund 
laboured  unremittingly,  making  personal  visits  to 
the  rich  and  influential,  sending  out  letters  and  cir- 
culars, and  giving  largely  from  their  own  resources. 
One  thousand  pounds  were  obtained  from  her  Majesty 
and  the  Prince  Consort,  and  similar  sums  from  the 
good  Queen  Adelaide,  Archbishop  Howley,  the 
Bishop  of  London  (Blomfield),  the  Dean  and  Chapter 
of  Westminster  (besides  other  gifts  of  land,  &c.), 
and  Archdeacon  Bentinck,  a  member  of  the  Chapter  ; 
500/.  from  the  Duke  of  Buccleuch,  &c.,  300/,  from 
Sir  Robert  Peel,  the  site  of  a  church  by  Mr.  Cubitt, 
&c.  Over  and  above  all  this,  Miss  (now  the 
Baroness)  Burdett  Coutts  generously  expended 
30,000/.  on  St.  Stephen's,  Rochester  Row,  with 
schools,  parsonage,  &c.  ;  and  Archdeacon  Bentinck, 
with  characteristic  munificence,  besides  taking  part 
in  the  corporate  donations  of  the  Chapter  of  West- 
minster, built  the  church  of  Holy  Trinity  at  his  own 
expense.  The  daughters  of  Bishop  Monk,  at  a 
somewhat  later  date,  erected  the  Church  of  St.  James- 
the-Less  as  a  memorial  to  their  father. 

Dr.  Wordsworth,   though   a  comparatively    poor 
man   himself,   gave    1000/."  and   his  colleague,  Mr., 

^  In  It  is  eighth  Boyle  Lecture,  preached  in  1854,  Dr.  Words- 
wortl;  lluis  drew  attention  to  the  deterioration  of  the  homes  and 
households  of  the  London  poor : — "Magnificent  mansions  have 
been   built  for  the  rich  ;    new  streets  and  terraces  and  squares 


— t85o.]      WESTMINSTER  SPIRITUAL  AID  FUND.        121 

afterwards  Sir  W.  Page  Wood,  was  equally  liberal. 
Another  name  which  it  is  impossible  to  pass  over 
was  that  of  the  Hon.  J.  C.  Talbot,  Q.C.,  who  with 
his  remarkably  gifted  wife  took  a  keen  interest  in  all 
that  concerned  Westminster  and  the  condition  of  its 
poor.  His  early  death  was  deeply  and  widely  felt ; 
but  the  present  generation,  especially  those  educated 
at  Oxford,  will  gather  what  the  parents  must  have 
been  from  its  knowledge  of  what  the  Church  owes 
to  their  sons. 

The  following  paragraphs  from  the  pen  of  J.  G. 
Talbot,  Esq.,  M.P.,  will  show  what  has  been  "the 
recent  working  of  the  Fund  : — 

It  is  very  pleasant  to  me,  as  the  present  treasurer  of  the 
Westminster  Spiritual  Aid  Fund,  to  be  allowed  to  add  a 
few  words  to  what  has  been  stated  above  as  to  the  starting 
of  the  Fund.  "  Other  men  laboured"  indeed^  and  we  have 
"  entered  into  their  labours."  I  am  acquainted  with  very 
few  works  which  have  produced  so  permanent  an  effect 
for  good  as  this  Fund.  Canon  Wordsworth  (as  he  then 
was)  knew  probably  that  he  was  laying  his  foundations 
deep,  but  I  doubt  whether  even  his  foresight  could  have 
known  how  beneficent  would  be  the  results  of  his  labours, 
nor  how  easy  a  task  he  left  to  his  successors.     By  the  wise 

have  been  opened  for  them.  But  what  has  become  of  the  poor 
whose  tenements  have  been  swept  away  to  make  room  for  these 
splendid  fabrics  ?  What  Dives  has  gained,  Lazarus  has  lost. 
The  poor  have  been  forced  into  more  crowded  and  squalid 
abodes,  which  afford  no  room  for  the  decencies  of  life.  Here, 
therefore,  compensation  is  due  from  wealth  to  poverty,"  (S:c. 
His  pocket-memoranda  show  also  how  he  took  practical  note 
of  the  material  and  sanitary  needs  of  his  poor  parishioners  in  the 
country,  and  how  he  pleaded  with  the  landlords  for  their  benefit. 


122  EARLY  WESTMINSTER  LIFE.  [1844— 

course  of  asking  for  large  lump  sums  from  those  who  could 
afford  to  give  them,  and  by  investing  them,  he  and  Mr.  Page 
Wood  (the  future  Lord  Hatherley)  provided  a  Sustentation 
Fund  for  the  clergy  and  the  schools  of  Westminster  in 
succeeding  years,  and  now  it  may  be  boldly  said  that 
nothing  but  wholesale  confiscation  of  modern  endowments 
(which,  even  in  these  days,  we  need  hardly  dread)  can  rob 
the  Church  of  this  most  valuable  provision.  Every  quarter 
cheques  are  regularly  paid  to  the  nine  incumbents  of  the 
parishes  and  sub-districts  of  Westminster,  for  the  main- 
tenance of  curates,  and  in  most  cases  for  the  support  of 
Church  schools, — and  this  without  any  burden  upon  the 
treasurer  and  secretary  for  the  time  being.  The  capital 
which  remained  over  after  the  immediate  necessities  of  the 
time  had  been  provided  for,  has  been  prudently  invested, 
and  the  result  is  that  half  of  the  annual  expenditure  is 
provided  for  out  of  the  interest  of  such  investments.  The 
balance  is  made  up  by  a  few  annual  subscriptions,  and  by 
contributions  from  the  offertories  of  the  various  churches. 
In  connection  with  this,  it  may  be  interesting  to  mention 
that  from  Westminster  Abbey,  at  whose  altar  Canon 
Wordsworth  ministered  so  frequently,  a  very  liberal  con- 
tribution is  annually  received — the  result  of  a  system  of 
weekly  collection  from  the  overflowing  congregations, 
which  in  earlier  days  were  allowed  to  depart  without 
taking  any  share  in  supporting  the  various  works  of  the 
Church. 

Since  the  foundation  of  the  Fund,  no  less  a  sum  than 
33,610/.  has  been  granted  to  the  support  of  curates  in 
Westminster,  and  9069/.  towards  the  maintenance  of 
schools,  whilst  the  expenses  of  management  have  been 
only  454/.,  or  about  i  per  cent,  on  the  total  expenditure. 

From  these  figures  it  will  be  seen  how  great  have  been 
the  results  of  Bishop  Wordsworth's  labours.  The  clergy 
of  the  present  day  arc  constantly  testifying  to  their  im- 
portance, but  their  full  value  will   not  be  known  till  the 


—  1850.]  TRAINING  OF  NURSES.  123 

day  when  the  jewels  of  the  heavenly  kingdom  are  "  made 
up,"  and  it  is  known  how  many  souls  have  been  rescued, 
instructed,  edified  by  the  ministrations  of  the  Church  in 
Westminster,  which,  but  for  this  Fund,  might  have  lan- 
guished, as  elsewhere  they  have  done,  or  might  have  been 
maintained  at  the  cost  of  constant  and  exhausting 
pressure. 

But  there  was  another  subject  which  also  occupied 
much  of  the  time  and  thoughts  of  the  new  Canon  of 
Westminster,  i.e.  the  question  of  the  training  of 
nurses  for  the  sick  and  poor. 

This  was  the  era  of  the  foundation  of  sisterhoods. 
The  exertions  of  Miss  Sellon  at  Devonport,  and  of 
many  others  that  might  be  mentioned,  showed  how 
nobly  women  might  devote  themselves  to  the  service 
of  God  by  working  among  the  crowded  and  neglected 
populations  of  our  large  and  busy  centres  of  labour. 
But  there  was  one  special  department,  that  of 
hospital  and  private  nursing,  which  was  still  most 
inadequately  provided  for.  Among  the  numerous 
class  of  devout  and  highly  cultivated  women  to 
which  the  Church  is  indebted  for  much  of  her  best 
charitable  work  may  be  reckoned  one  very  dear 
to  Dr.  Wordsworth,  his  wife's  eldest  sister,  Miss 
Elizabeth  Frere.  No  account  of  those  days  would 
be  complete  without  some  mention  of  her.  She 
was  to  her  brother-in-law  the  sympathetic,  intelli- 
gent listener,  the  delightful  companion,  the  earnest 
and  unselfish  helper  of  his  graver  hours,  yet  bring- 
ing into  his  severer  pursuits  an  element  of  humour, 
grace,     and    abandon    which    no   one    could    more 


124  EARLY  WESTMINSTER  LIFE.  [1844— 

thoroughly  appreciate  than  himself.  Hers  was  the 
stimulating  and  enlivening,  as  his  wife's  was  the 
soothing  and  sustaining  influence  in  his  life.  Her 
bright,  playful,  clever  talk,  and  winnipg  personal 
charm,  were  just  as  much  at  the  service  of  a 
child  or  a  dull  country  neighbour  as  they  would 
have  been  in  the  most  brilliant  circles.  Full  of 
interest  as  she  was  in  works  of  public  charity,  she 
never  lost  sight  of  the  claims  of  home,  and  nursed 
both  parents,  at  considerable  sacrifice  of  her  own 
health,  to  the  close  of  their  loved  and  honoured  old 
age.  At  the  time  of  which  we  write  she  took  a  large 
share  in  the  foundation  of  what  was  afterwards 
known  as  St.  John's  House,  and  long  and  frequent 
were  the  consultations  between  Mr.  Frere,  Dr. 
Wordsworth,  and  herself  on  this  subject.  Dr.  Jelf, 
of  King's  College,  was  also  a  warm  supporter  of  the 
scheme. 

The  institution  was  founded  in  1848,  Miss  Frere 
being  the  first  Lady  Superintendent.  Its  object  was 
to  train  and  provide  a  home  for  nurses,  and  to 
place  them  under  the  care  of  a  Master  (a  clergy- 
man who  should  be  amenable  to  the  Bishop  of  the 
diocese),  and  a  Lady  Superintendent  with  other  lady 
associates. 

Vows  of  celibacy  on  the  part  of  the  sisters  were 
not  received  ;  the  dress  was  made  as  simple  and 
convenient  as  possible,  and  the  whole  tone  of  the 
institution  was  such  as  to  enable  ladies  of  moderate 
Church  views  to  join  it,  and  thus  obtain  an  oppor- 


■1850.J     FOUNDATION  OF  '  ST.  JOHN'S  HOUSE.'  125 


tunity  of  helping  the  sick  and  poor  around  them, 
without  the  severance  of  domestic  ties. 

Since  those  days  the  work  of  St.  John's  House 
has  become  well  and  widely  known  :  so  many  of  the 
London  poor  have,  when  patients  in  King's  or 
Charing  Cross  Hospitals,  learnt  to  watch  for  those 
blue  dresses  and  white  caps  gliding  about  the  spa- 
cious wards  ;  so  many  of  the  rich  have  seen  the  "  St. 
John's  nurse  "  taking  her  place  by  some  dear  one's 
bedside,  with  a  sense  of  relief  and  gratitude,  that  it 
seems  unnecessary  to  spend  words  here  in  commen- 
dation of  what  has  already  commended  itself.  But  it  is 
well  to  remember  that  what  we  can  easily  obtain  has 
been  procured  for  us  by  much  labour,  thought,  and 
prayer  on  the  part  of  those  who  have  gone  before, 
and  that  of  all  works  of  practical  Christianity  few 
are  more  difficult  than  the  establishment  of  a  nursing 
sisterhood,  from  the  variety  of  interests  which  have 
to  be  consulted,  the  complex  nature  of  the  arrange- 
ments, especially  where  hospital  work  is  concerned, 
and  the  nervous  strain  to  which  hard-worked  women 
are  specially  liable. 

Another  and  a  kindred  subject  may  be  mentioned 
by  anticipation  here.  The  Westminster  Hospital, 
standing  as  it  does  very  near  the  Abbey,  could  not 
fail  to  arouse  a  great  interest  in  a  mind  like  Dr. 
Wordsworth's.  Besides  occasionally  visiting  indi- 
vidual patients  he  organized  a  staff  of  lady  visitors 
to  the  various  wards.  These  ladies  used  to  meet 
periodically  at  his  house.     At  a  later  date  the  work 


126  EARLY  WESTMINSTER  LIFE.  [1844— 

was  warmly  taken  up  by  Lady  Augusta  Stanley, 
between  whom  and  Dr.  Wordsworth  there  always 
existed,  despite  some  well-known  circumstances 
which  might  have  led  to  an  opposite  result,  the  most 
friendly  relations.  And  it  may  be  mentioned  here 
that  the  portable  Communion  set  given  to  him  by 
"the  ladies  visiting  Westminster  Hospital,''  with 
Lady  Augusta  Stanley  at  their  head,  on  his  appoint- 
ment to  the  See  of  Lincoln,  was  used  for  his  own 
death-bed  Communion  at  Harewood. 

But  to  return  to  matters  of  a  wider  public  interest. 

In  the  winter  of  1848-9  Dr.  Wordsworth  was 
appointed  Hulsean  Lecturer  at  Cambridge.  He 
refers  to  this  appointment  in  the  following  letter : — 

To  William  Wordsworth,  Esq. 

Cloisters y  Westminster y 
J  mi.  2,  1847. 

My  dear  Uncle, — Enclosed  is  a  copy  of  my  article  in 
the  English  Review  .  .  .  you  will  see  if  you  look  at  it 
again  that  your  remarks  as  to  the  siiaviter  in  viodo  have 
not  been  disregarded.  I  have  also  borrowed  some  passages 
from  your  prose,  as  well  as  from  your  poetry. 

I  see  that  in  your  prose  additions  to  "  Yarrow  Revisited," 
you  enlarge  on  the  conservative  and  restorative  character 
of  our  English  Reformation.  Pardon  me  if  I  repeat  that 
a  sojmet  in  the  same  spirit  would  be  a  most  valuable 
addition  to  your  Eccl.  Sketches_,  especially  in  these  times 
when  the  Reformation  is  evilly  attacked  and  not  less  evilly 
defended  in  certain  quarters.  You  have,  I  think,  done 
justice — perhaps  I  may  be  allowed  to  s^y  more  than  justice 
— to  the  better  elements  of  Romanism  in  your  lines  on  St. 
Bees  ;  may  not  the  Church  of  England  implore  for  some 


—  1850.]    LETTER  TO  WILLIAM  WORDSWORTH.  127 

cautionary  strictures  on  its  novelties  and  corruptions  ?  You 
will,  I  am  sure,  excuse  me  for  being  more  earnest  on  this 
point,  because  many  of  our  best  young  men  (with  whom 
your  poems  have  great  influence)  are  so  much  distressed 
with  all  the  dissensions  and  heresies,  which  they  are  told 
by  Romanists  and  Romanizers  have  been  engendered  by 
the  principles  of  the  Reformation,  that  they  require  to  be 
taught  a  great  deal  more  clearly  than  has  been  lately  the 
case,  what  those  principles  really  are  ;  and  unless  they  are 
so  taught.  Dissent  will  drive  them  to  Rome, 

We  had  a  very  interesting  day  at  Trinity  College  Ter- 
centenary Festival,  of  which  you  will  have  seen  some 
account  in  the  Guardian,  to  which  I  contributed  the 
article  on  the  needs  of  the  Nation,  the  Church,  and  Univer- 
sities. The  Master  quoted  the  "Happy  Warrior"  in  one 
of  his  speeches  in  the  Hall,  and  the  preacher  paid  a  beauti- 
ful and  affecting  tribute  to  the  memory  of  my  dear  father, 
in  his  sermon  in  the  chapel.  Yesterday  I  received  a  letter 
from  the  Vice-Chancellor,  announcing  to  me  that  I  had 
been  elected  Hulsean  Lecturer  at  Cambridge  for  the 
present  year.  The  duty  is  nine  sermons  to  be  preached 
at  St.  Mary's ;  the  stipend  about  300/.  What  I  par- 
ticularly value  in  the  appointment  is,  that  it  enables  me  to 
keep  up  my  connection  with  the  University,  which,  in  these 
times,  is  an  object  of  the  greatest  interest. 

We  have  heard  a  very  good  account  of  Charles  ^  and  his 
wife  from  Pisa  .  .  .  now  I  suppose  they  are  at  Rome, 
which  appears  to  have  been  laid  waste  by  terrific  floods,  in 
which  some  of  your  favourite  stone-pines  have  perished 
.  .  With  all  the  good  auguries  of  the  season,  and  love 
to  our  aunts,  I  am,  my  dear  uncle, 

Yours  affectionately, 

Chr.  Wordsworth. 

^  His  brother  Charles  had  recently  married  Katharine,  daughter 
of  the  Rev.  W.  B.  Barter,  of  Burghclere,  and  niece  of  the  Warden 
of  Winchester. 


128  EARLY  WESTMINSTER  LIFE.  [1844— 

The  subject  chosen  for  the  Hulsean  Lectures  was 
the  interpretation  of  the  Apocalypse.  The  sermons 
were  prepared  with  great  care,  and  were  preached  with 
all  the  fire  and  fervour  of  powers  then  at  their  height. 
They  were  published  afterwards  as  "  Lectures  on 
the  Apocalypse,"  and  subsequently  to  a  great  extent 
incorporated  in  his  "Notes  on  the  Greek  Testament." 

But  it  was  as  a  Canon  of  Westminster  Abbey 
that  his  most  important  influence  as  a  preacher  was 
exercised. 

The  mere  titles  of  his  sermons  show  that  he  was 
wont  to  treat  from  the  pulpit  of  the  great  topics 
which  affected  the  Church,  and  to  some  extent  the 
State  of  England  in  those  days,  and  despite  the 
somewhat  unusual  length  of  the  sermons,  and  the 
temperature  of  the  then  unwarmed  building,  crowds 
used  to  gather  there  Sunday  after  Sunday.*  And  very 

4  The  Bishop  of  S.  Andrew's  writes  :  "  Perhaps  the  following 
anecdote  may  be  introduced  as  bearing  upon  the  complaint  that 
his  sermons  were  often  too  long  : — I  was  once  calling  upon  the 
old  Bishop  of  Exeter  (Philpotts),  in  London,  and  in  the  course  of 
conversation  he  remarked,  '  I  wish  you  would  persuade  your 
brother,  the  Canon,  not  to  preach  quite  such  long  sermons.  My 
daughter '  (she  was  very  deaf)  '  always  attends  the  Abbey  services, 
and  would  enjoy  them  more  if  he  would  be  a  little  shorter.'  To 
which  I  replied, '  I  will  certainly  convey  your  Lordship's  message, 
and  I  am  aware  that  others  occasionally  make  the  same  com- 
plaint. But  in  justice  to  my  brother,  allow  me  to  mention  what 
the  Warden  of  Winchester,  whom  I  think  you  know,  told  me  not 
long  ago  :  "  When  I  was  in  London,"  he  said,  "  I  went  to  hear  your 
brother  preach  at  the  Abbey.  There  was  a  crowded  congrega- 
tion, and  I  had  to  stand  (in  the  north  transept)  during  the  whole 
of  the  service.     As  soon  as  the  sermon  was  finished,  a  stranger. 


—  1850.]  SERMONS  IN  THE  ABBEY.  129 

few  Monday  mornings  passed  without  some  letter 
of  grateful  appreciation,  which  would  be  handed 
to  his  wife,  perhaps  only  half  perused,  with  some 
playful  scolding  if  she  attempted  to  read  it  aloud. 

For  further  details  on  this  subject  we  must,  how- 
ever, refer  the  reader  to  the  chapter  on  his  literary 
work,  and  proceed  now  with  our  account  of  his 
personal  history. 

who  was  standing  next  to  nie^  pointed  to  the  clock  in  the 
south  transept,  and  said,  'Just  an  hour  3  but  not  a  moment  too 
long  ! ' " 


CHAPTER  VI. 

WESTMINSTER  AND  STANFORD-IN-THE-VALE. 

On  April  23,  1850,  Wm.  Wordsworth  died  at  Rydal, 
and  his  nephew,  as  his  Hterary  executor,  was  sum- 
moned thither,  and  spent  the  summer  with  his  family 
at  the  Lakes.  Did  space  allow  us  we  should  like  to 
dwell  on  the  recollection  of  that  simple,  cottage-like 
home.  In  1850  the  old  faces  still  lingered  in  the 
old  haunts.  Mrs.  Wordsworth  was  there  in  her 
ripe  old  age,  but  active  still,  with  her  beautiful 
calm  cheerfulness  and  kindness,'  and  the  poet's 
sister  Dorothy,  then  an  invalid  of  many  years,  might 
still  be  seen  on  a  sunny  afternoon  in  her  wheel- 
chair in  the  garden,  with  the  robins  hovering 
about  her,  and  seemed  like  a  reflection  of  bygone 
days.  Her  fine  head,  marked  features,  and  keen 
blue-grey  eyes,  showed  what  she  once  had  been,  and 
there  was  all  the  old  quickness  of  sensibility  and 
warmth  of  heart,  which  made  her  brother  once  say 
of  her,  "  Her  loving-kindness  was  surely  never 
exceeded  by  any  of  God's  creatures." 

This  was  one  of  the  busiest  as  well  as  the  most 
sorrowful  periods  in  Dr.  Wordsworth's  life.  Mrs. 
George  Frere,  his  wife's  mother,  had  died  only  two 
or  three  days  before  his  uncle,  the  poet,  and  in  the 


1850.]  S.F.G.  TOUR  IN  IRELAND.  131 

early  summer  of  1851  he  had  the  great  sorrow  of 
losing  his  beloved  brother-in-law  and  college  friend, 
the  Rev.  John  Frere,  of  whom  an  earlier  mention 
has  been  made  ;  and  as  his  uncle's  literary  executor, 
he  was  entrusted  with  the  publication  of  "  The  Pre- 
lude," and  composition  of  the  Poet's  Memoirs. 

In  the  autumn  of  1851  Dr.  Wordsworth  went  to 
Ireland  on  a  S.P.G.  tour,  in  company  with  his  dear 
friend,  the  Rev.  Ernest  Hawkins,  the  valued  secre- 
tary of  that  society.  After  visiting  St.  Columba's 
College,  and  the  beautiful  banks  of  the  Dargle, 
he  writes  to  his  wife  from  the  Palace  at  Armagh  : — 

Sept.  23,  1851. 
This  morning  we  went  to  the  cathedral,  and  this  being 
the  day  of  the  visitation,  there  was  a  great  gathering  of 
clergy,  and  the  primate  delivered  his  charge.  It  was  well 
worth  a  journey  from  England  to  see  and  hear  this  most 
admirable  and  venerable  archbishop  address  his  clergy  in 
his  own  cathedral  on  such  an  occasion.  I  have  met 
numberless  kind  friends,  and  my  difficulty,  it  seems,  will 
be  now  that  I  have  got  into  this  country  to  be  able  to  get 
out  again.  I  send  you  a  bill  of  fare  enclosed,  showing 
what  is  proposed  for  S.P.G.  meetings.  .  .  . 

Yours  everywhere  most  lovingly, 

Chr.  Wordsworth. 

In  a  letter  with  the  same  date,  he  adds  : — 

Nothing  can  be  kinder  than  the  Primate  is.  I  only  wish 
you  could  see  him.  You  would  love  him  so  dearly.  I 
have  had  the  best  possible  opportunities  of  seeing  the 
Irish  clergy  in  these  parts,  and  shall  have  much  to  tell  you 
when  we  meet.  To-morrow  I  atn  to  preach  in  the  morn- 
ing in  Armagh  Cathedral. 

K   2 


132  WESTMINSTER  &>  STANFORD-IN-THE-VALE.  [1850— 


On  the  30th  he  visited  the  Bishop  of  Down  and 
Connor  at  Holywood,  where  he  also  met  with  a 
most  kind  reception,  and  after  speaking  at  a  variety 
of  other  places,  returned  home  at  the  beginning  of 
October,  full  of  renewed  interest  in,  and  sympathy 
with,  the  Church  of  the  sister  island.  This  led  to  the 
production  of  a  series  of  sermons  on  the  Irish  Church 
which  were  afterwards  published. 

The  years  1850-51  were  also  memorable  in  Dr. 
Wordsworth's  life  as  the  time  of  his  entering  on 
the  work  of  a  country  clergyman.  He  under- 
took the  charge  of  the  parish  of  Stanford-in-the- 
Vale-cum-Goosey,  a  large  poor  parish  in  the  gift 
of  the  Dean  and  Chapter  of  Westminster,  which, 
with  a  nominal  income  of  about  350/.  a  year,  left 
him,  when  two  curates'  salaries,  repairs,  and  charities 
were  deducted,  perhaps  on  the  whole  rather  a  poorer 
man  than  it  found  him.  Stanford  enjoyed,  with 
Challow,  a  neighbouring  village,  the  unenviable 
reputation  of  being  the  most  neglected  and  dis- 
orderly locality  in  the  district,  as  recent  statistics  had 
testified.  It  was  an  "open"  parish,  i.e.  there  was 
no  resident  squire,  but  a  number  of  small  owners  of 
property,  the  consequence  being  that  every  one  who 
was  turned  out  of  any  of  the  neighbouring  villages 
found  a  refuge  there.  The  overcrowding  and  lack 
of  decent  accommodation  produced  the  usual  effects, 
and  drunkenness  and  immorality  were  so  common  as 
to  be  almost  disregarded. 

Stanford,  which  lies  in  that  part  of  Berkshire  which 


— 1868.]  STANFORD-IN-THE-VALE.  133 

has  been  celebrated  by  "Tom  Brown"  as  the  Vale 
of  White  Horse,  is  a  long,  straggling  village  with  a 
"green"  skirted  by  cottages,  and  gently  rising 
towards  the  churchyard,  which  is  shaded  by  fine 
elm-trees.  The  church  has  some  antiquarian  interest, 
especially  for  a  double  squint  or  hagioscope,  which 
we  believe  is  somewhat  rare,  in  the  north  aisle, 
and  is  by  no  means  unpicturesque  with  its  grey 
battlemented  tower  and  fine  east  window.  The 
vicarage,  when  Dr.  Wordsworth  first  entered  up- 
on it,  was  a  small,  incommodious  house,  which 
he  greatly  enlarged  and  improved  without  destroy- 
ing its  unpretentious  character ;  and  the  garden 
never  lost  its  old-fashioned  look.  Its  chief  feature 
was  a  small  orchard  which  sloped  upwards  to  a 
low  ivy-clad  wall  (beneath  which  was  a  stone  seat), 
and  was  surrounded  by  a  narrow  walk,  a  favourite 
place  of  meditation  for  the  vicar,  who  could  see  from 
thence  the  characteristic  "White  Horse"  range  and 
a  wide  expanse  of  arable  country,  with  not  unfre- 
quently  a  fine  sunset  beyond. 

It  was  here  that  he  used  to  talk  over,  generally 
with  some  member  of  his  family,  whatever  literary 

work  he  was  engaged  upon.^    "  N ,  did  you  ever 

read  Isaiah  ?  "  he  would  perhaps  say  ;  and  at  once  he 
would  begin  pouring  out  his  thoughts  on  the  chapter 
he  was  then  studying,  and  the  names  of  old  historic 
dynasties    and    empires    would     blend     somewhat 

^  He   had   at    this   time   begun    his    Commentary    on    Holy 
Scripture. 


134  WESTMINSTER  &>  STANFORD-IN-THE-VALE.  [1850— 

Strangely  with  the  steady  beat  of  the  pacing  foot- 
steps, and  perhaps  the  distant  bleating  of  the 
sheep  or  the  voices  of  the  children  playing  under 
the  wall. 

The  first  thing  a  visitor  to  the  house  would 
probably  notice  was  the  inscription  on  a  stone  above 
the  principal  door:  "Nisi  Dominus  eedificaverit 
domum,  vanus  est  labor  sedificantium  earn."  The 
dining-room  ceiling  bore  on  the  sides  of  its  low  rafters 
the  words,  "  Whether  ye  eat  or  drink  ...  do  all  to 
the  glory  of  God,"  "  Speak  evil  of  no  man,"  "Blessed 
are  they  that  do  hunger  and  thirst  after  righteous- 
ness," and  "  In  everything  give  thanks."  The  store- 
closet  contained  a  delicate  little  warning  to  the 
anxious  mistress  of  the  house  in  the  words  "  Mdpda 
MapOa'^  and  the  entrance  to  the  vicar's  study  was 
headed  by  "  'E^ayopdl^eaOe  rov  Kaipov,^^  while  round 
the  bow  window  inside  were  the  words  "El  tls  iu 
XpidT^  Kaivy)  KTicrL<;,  to,  dp^axa  TraprjXdev,  IBov  yiyove 
Kaivd  TO,  TTcivTa."  Over  his  dressing-room  door  he 
had  the  text  "  Nolumus  exspoliari  sed  supervestiri." 

There  was  little  to  notice  in  the  house  save  the 
preponderance  of  books,  and,  with  the  exception  of  a 
few  good  prints,  the  lack  of  ornaments.  Everything 
bore  traces  of  a  busy  but  unpretentious  life.  For 
years  he  never  kept  a  carriage,  and  though  there 
was  no  stint  in  any  of  the  needful  comforts  of  life, 
yet  the  "lust  of  the  eye"  was  but  slightly  gratified. 

Almost  the  first  act  of  Dr.  Wordsworth  on  be- 
ginning  work    at    Stanford   was    to    set    about    the 


-1868.]  LIFE  AS  A  COUNTRY  CLERGYMAN.  13S 


restoration  of  the  parish  church  and  the  improve- 
ment of  the  national  school.  It  was  a  parish  in 
which  nearly  everything  had  to  be  done,  alike  in 
providing  the  externals  of  Church  worship,  and  in 
raising  the  spiritual  and  moral  tone. 

The  little  hamlet  already  mentioned  was,  if  pos- 
sible, still  more  neglected.  He  restored  the  chapel 
and  soon  afterwards  built  a  parsonage  with  school 
attached,  which  was  served  for  a  time  by  a  deacon 
schoolmaster  from  St.  Mark's. 

There  was  something  very  characteristic  in  the 
way  the  new  vicar  contrived,  when  already  between 
forty  and  fifty  years  of  age,  to  adapt  himself  to 
surroundings  so  unlike  any  that  had  gone  before, 
and  apparently  so  uncongenial  to  the  habits  of  a 
student.  He  had  one  great  advantage  not  common 
to  studious  men,  a  remarkably  good  memory  for 
faces ^  and  names,  and  another  equally  necessary  for 
dealing  with  rustic  populations,  a  clear  and  powerful 
voice,  and  great  readiness  and  power  of  illustration. 

^  After  his  first  visit  to  Stanford  he  made  notes  to  fix  in  his 
memory  the  personaUty  of  those  whom  he  had  met : — 

Mary  C ,  black  eyes  [Uke]  Mrs.  D . 

Emma  B ,  Titian. 

Ellen  W ,  hair  tied ;  brown  ribbon. 

Henry  M ,  picture  ;  reserved,  shy. 

Jesse  W , white ;  flaxen,  longish  hair. 

Rebecca ,  red,  large,  goodnatured  face  ;  good. 

Anne ,  scowlish. 

Some  of  these  occur  in  his  list  of  children,  entitled  "  dpvtoyvw/xo- 
uvvq"  which  afterwards  gave  place  to  a  more  complete  "  Speculum 
Gregis." 


136   WESTMINSTER  &-  STANFORD-IN-  THE-  VALE.  [1850— 

It  may  be  added,  too,  that  he  never  lost  his  temper, 
nor  allowed  himself,  at  the  most  irritating  and  trying 
of  vestry  meetings,  or  under  any  other  circumstances, 
to  say  a  word  he  could  possibly  afterwards  regret. 
Letters  from  two  of  his  curates,  the  Rev,  T.  W. 
Elrington,  and  the  Rev.  L.  G.  Maine,  will  give  some 
idea  of  what  he  was  at  this  time. 

The  Rev.  T.  W.  Elrington,  Vicar  of  Saling,  Essex, 
writes,  March  12th,  1886: — 

I  have  peculiar  reason  for  love  and  gratitude  to  him. 
Entering  the  ministry  so  much  later  in  life  than  men  ordi- 
narily do,  and  after  years  spent  in  the  army,  I  stood  in 
much  need  of  the  kind,  considerate,  and  careful  teaching 
I  received  from  your  father. 

My  training  as  a  soldier,  whilst  it,  in  some  respects, 
might  be  found  useful  to  the  young  curate,  had  perhaps 
this  disadvantage,  that,  accustomed  to  obedience  from 
those  over  whom  I  was  placed,  I  rather  looked  for  the 
same  kind  of  compliance  from  my  parishioners. 

How  quietly  and  how  wisely  your  father  corrected  this  ! 
Teaching  me  that  whilst  I  must  not  look  for  that  unhesi- 
tating obedience  rendered  by  soldiers  to  those  in  authority 
over  them,  I  was  not  on  that  account  to  be  discouraged, 
and  think  it  of  no  use  to  tell  my  parishioners  faithfully  and 
fully  that  which  it  was  their  duty  to  do,  at  the  same  time 
trying  to  win  their  obedience  by  gentle  persuasion  rather 
than  by  stern  command. 

By  none,  save  one  circumstanced  as  myself,  can  the 
value  of  my  dear  vicar's  teaching  on  this  point  be  fully 
appreciated  ! 

Here  let  mc  observe  that  when  I  became  Dr.  Words- 
worth's curate,  he,  in  addition  to  his  duties  as  Canon  of 
Westminster,  had  just  undertaken  the  spiritual  care  of  the 
pari.sh   of  Stanford-cum-Gooscy.     The  desire  for  Church 


— 1868.]     LETTER  FROM  REV.  T.   W.  ELVINGTON.         137 

restoration  was  beginning  to  take  hold  of  all  who  sin- 
cerely wished  the  welfare  of  the  people  and  the  spread  of 
true  religion  amongst  them.  Of  course  there  was  oppo- 
sition, and  never  shall  I  forget  the  firmness,  and  yet  gentle 
persuasiveness,  with  which  he  met  and  conquered  his 
opponents.  I  remember  well  how  that  after  the  vestry  had 
decided  upon  the  restoration  of  the  parish  church,  one  old 
parishioner  stoutly  declared  that  no  one  should  touch  Jiis 
pew  ;  that  the  pew  had  belonged  to  his  father  and  grand- 
father, and  I  know  not  how  many  generations  back  ;  that 
no  one  should  touch  it  without  his  consent.  Well  !  some 
thought  that  as  the  majority  had  decided  in  favour  of 
doing  away  with  the  pews,  no  one  individual  could  resist 
the  will  of  the  majority.  "  True,"  said  the  kind-hearted  vicar, 
"  but  we  wish  to  do  this  willingly."  And  then  to  our  astonish- 
ment, addressing  this  resolute  supporter  of  the  old  pews,  he 

said,  "  Certainly,  Mr. ;  no  one  wishes  to  do  anything 

in  this  matter  against  your  will.  Your  pew  shall  not  be 
touched  without  your  consent.  But  we  are  going  to  do 
away  with  all  the  others,  and  put  open  sittings  instead. 
Yours  shall  remain  as  long  as  you  wish." 

And  so  it  was.  The  church  was  restored  with  open 
sittings,  leaving  this  one  relic  of  the  square  pew  system  in 
all  its  hideousness.  But  within  a  twelvemonth  the  owner 
entreated  to  be  allowed,  at  his  own  cost,  to  take  it  away 
and  replace  it  with  open  sittings.  .  .  . 

I  cannot  help  expressing  the  admiration  I  felt  for  him 
in  his  treatment  of  children,  his  kind  and  gentle  manner, 
his  evident  love  for  them,  winning  from  them  not  only 
their  ready  attention,  but  also  their  sincere  love  :  witness 
his  catechizings  in  church,  when  his  questions  were  so 
framed  as  to  draw  out  to  the  full  what  the  children  knew 
of  the  subject,  which  he  supplemented  in  language  so  suit- 
able that  the  child  not  only  embraced  the  additional  infor- 
mation so  conveyed,  but  almost  seemed  to  regard  it  as  of 
necessity  part  of  its  own  answer.     His  wonderful  know- 


138   WESTMINSTER  &-  STANFORD-IN-THE-  VALE.  [1850— 

ledge  of  the  Bible  led  him  to  use  the  language  of  Holy- 
Scripture  whenever  he  could  with  propriety  do  so,  and 
this  he  encouraged  in  the  children.  I  well  remember 
when  catechizing  the  children  in  Stanford  Church,  I  asked 
the  class  why  Moses  was  not  allowed  to  enter  the  Promised 
Land.  There  was  a  moment's  pause,  when  a  little  girl  of 
seven  or  eight  years  old  replied,  "  Because  they  provoked 
his  spirit,  so  that  he  spake  unadvisedly  with  his  lips." 
The  vicar,  who  was  present  and  saw  the  look  of  pleasure 
with  which  I  heard  the  answer,  asked  me  afterwards  if  I 
had  not  been  delighted  with  that  answer,  and  when  I  said 
that  I  felt  that,  had  it  not  been  in  church,  I  could  have 
taken  the  little  thing  in  my  arms  and  kissed  her  for  her 
answer,  he  smiled  and  said,  "  I  don't  wonder ;  it  was  a 
beautiful  answer." 

I  need  not  say  I  was  sorry  to  leave  him,  but  with  the 
termination  of  my  curacy  his  interest  in  and  his  true 
friendship  for  me  and  mine  did  not  end.  And  from  the 
time  of  my  leaving  Berkshire  to  the  last  year  of  his  life — 
a  period  of  more  than  thirty  years — I  knew  I  possessed  in 
him  a  most  wise  and  prudent  counsellor,  a  kind,  sympa- 
thizing, and  affectionate  friend.  Would  that  I  could  have 
seen  more  of  him  !  But  the  last  time  that  we  ever  met 
was  when  he,  Mrs  Wordsworth,  and  your  sister  spent  a 
couple  of  days  with  us  at  the  re-opening  of  our  church.  .  .  . 

The  Rev.  L.  G.  Maine  writes  : — 

Soiverhy  Vicarage,  Thirsk, 

April  15,  1885. 
My  dear  Canon  Wordsworth, — My  first  intro- 
duction to  your  father  was  in  his  study  at  Westminster  in 
the  summer  of  1859.  He  had  advertised  for  a  curate  in 
the  Ecclesiastical  Garjctte,  and  I,  having  accidentally  seen 
the  advertisement,  replied  to  it  ;  I  say  accidentally,  but  I 
have  always  looked  upon  it  as  a  providential  guiding,  for 
I  had  expressed  a  wish  to  be  his  curate  after  reading  his 


—1868.]        LETTER  FROM  REV.  L.  G.  MAINE.  139 

Commentary  on  the  Gospels,  and  now  the  opportunity- 
occurred.  It  was  arranged  that  I  should  come  to  Stanford 
in  August  of  that  year.  I  felt  a  little  afraid  of  him  at 
that  first  visit,  but  his  kind  and  affectionate  manner  soon 
put  me  at  ease.  When  I  came  to  him  he  was  engaged 
upon  S.  Paul's  Epistles,  and  during  the  seven  years  I  was 
at  Stanford  he  finished,  I  think,  his  whole  Commentary 
upon  the  New  and  a  great  part  of  the  Old  Testament. 
This  was  the  great  subject  of  his  thoughts,  and  he  was 
accustomed  to  talk  over  what  he  was  writing  with  the 
members  of  his  family,  and  with  me  in  long  walks  upon 
the  Faringdon  Road.  There  was  much  in  which  I  was 
unable  to  take  a  part,  but  he  had  the  habit  of  so  explaining 
himself  as  never  to  leave  any  sense  of  inferiority  on  the  mind. 
Indeed,  his  habit  of  veiling  his  great  knowledge  out  of  con- 
sideration to  others,  was  with  him  a  remarkable  character- 
istic. During  these  walks  we  had  long  discussions  on  the 
ecclesiastical  subjects  of  the  day,  religious  education,  the  in- 
crease of  the  episcopate,  the  inspiration  of  Holy  Scripture, 
&c.,  &c.  He  was  deeply  pained  by  any  attack  upon  the  faith 
of  the  Church.  He  felt  much  the  publication  of  the  Essays 
and  Reviews.  Before  his  protest  against  Dr.  Stanley  he 
was  greatly  agitated,  and  spent  several  sleepless  nights.  It 
was,  however,  a  very  striking  mark  of  his  character  that  he 
never  spoke  evil  of  his  opponents.  Indeed  he  was  a  pro- 
nounced enemy  to  all  evil  speaking  and  unkind  censure  of 
others.  I  have  heard  him  abruptly  change  the  conversation 
when  a  bishop,  who  was  visiting  him,  ventured  to  censure 
an  opponent.  So  deeply  did  he  feel  any  evil  threatening 
the  Church  that  at  such  times  a  cloud  seemed  to  come  over 
his  spirit,  and  his  conversation  would  be  full  of  melancholy 
forebodings.  As  a  parish  priest  he  was  an  example  to  all. 
I  was  expected  to  open  the  school  with  prayers  at  8.30,  but 
he  always  himself  taught  the  elder  children  for  an  hour 
before  the  end  of  school.  So  valuable  did  I  feel  his 
teaching  that  I  obtained  leave  always  to  be  present.     It 


1 40  IV£S TM/NS TER  &-  STA N FORD-IN- THE-  VALE.  l\?>so— 

was  the  same  with  his  preparation  of  candidates  for  Con- 
firmation, when  his  exposition  of  the  Creed,  and  Ten 
Commandments,  and  the  Sacraments,  was  so  lucid  and  in- 
structive that  new  h'ght  seemed  to  be  thrown  upon  them. 
On  one  subject  he  always  seemed  to  me  greatest — in  his 
teaching  on  the  Resurrection.  I  remember  it  was  always 
his  custom  to  have  seeds  sown  in  his  garden  on  Easter 
Eve,  and  his  greatest  delight  was  in  the  spring  flowers. 
Although  it  was  understood  that  I  was  responsible  for 
the  parish  visiting,  and  his  time  was  principally  devoted 
to  his  Commentary,  there  was  no  case  of  sickness  which  he 
did  not  visit  himself,  and  at  such  times  he  always  made 
opportunity  to  urge  the  reception  of  the  Holy  Communion, 
and  at  its  administration  he  would  take  great  pains  to 
gather  round  the  sick  or  dying  bed  as  many  of  the  relatives 
and  neighbours  as  he  could  persuade  to  be  present.  Sunday 
at  Stanford  was  a  very  bright  and  happy  day.  We  had  a 
beautiful  peal  of  bells,  and  it  was  a  pretty  sight  to  see  the 
people — many  of  them  in  their  white  smock  frocks — 
gathering  in  the  churchyard  for  divine  service.  The 
church  was  an  ancient  one,  dedicated  to  S.  Denys,  and 
had  been  well  restored  by  Mr.  Street,  through  the  exertions 
of  your  father.  The  service  was  very  plain,  only  the  hymns 
and  canticles  being  sung,  but  it  was  very  reverently  con- 
ducted. In  the  pulpit  your  father  was,  in  my  judgment, 
occasionally  too  long,  but  if  what  was  said  went  beyond  a 
rustic  congregation,  there  was  always  much — and  that  of 
the  richest  and  best — which  the  simplest  and  most  unlettered 
could  carry  away,  and  the  tone  and  manner  was  a  sermon 
in  itself.  When  I  was  appointed  myself  to  a  cure  of  souls, 
one  of  my  greatest  trials  was  no  longer  hearing  his  sermons. 
It  was  his  custom  to  catechize  the  children  after  the  second 
lesson  at  afternoon  prayer,  his  own  children,  and  those  of 
the  Clergy  Orphanage  under  Miss  Frere's  care,  standing 
up  with  the  rest.  This  was  a  custom  on  which  he  set  great 
value,  and  in  which  he  poured  out  his  stores  of  knowledge. 


— 1868.]        LETTER  FROM  REV.  L.  G.  MAINE.  141 

We  had  during  the  week  morning  prayer  on  Wednesday 
and  Friday,  always  with  catechizing,  and  evening  prayer 
on  Tuesday  and  Thursday.     We  had  no  daily  service,  for 
though  your  father  set  great  value  on  it,  and  always  at- 
tended the  daily  prayers  at  Westminster,  he  thought  that 
a  daily  service  might  prove  a  burden  to  me  during  his  five 
months'  absence   at  Westminster.     But  as   regards   such 
services  as  we  had,  he  was  never  absent  from  them,  and  he 
wished  me  not  to  be  absent.     On  Sunday  we  had  a  fort- 
nightly celebration  of  Holy   Communion,  alternately  late 
and  early.     The  subject  of  foreign  missions  was  very  near 
his   heart.     He  had  the  whole  parish    mapped   out   into 
districts,  and  collectors  appointed   to  each  district,  so  that 
every  family  might  be  invited   to  give  something  to  the 
Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel.     In  an  address 
upon  leaving  Stanford  he  wrote  :  "  I  can  never  forget  the 
services  of  the  District  Collectors  of  our  Missionary  Asso- 
ciation, who  have  continued  for  many  years  in  patience, 
perseverance,  and  quietness,  to  do  a  work  which,  if  it  were 
generally  performed  in  the  parishes  of  the  land,  would  go 
far  to  bring  about  a  fulfilment  of  our  Lord's  prophecy  and 
promise,  that  the  Gospel  of  the  Kingdom  shall  be  preached 
to   all    nations  ;    and    would    assuredly   bring   down    His 
blessing  on  all   those  parishes  which    co-operate  in   that 
labour  of  love."     Everything  in  the  life  at  Stanford  was 
stamped  with   the   sincerity  and    reality  of  your  father's 
character.     His  one  great  aim  seemed  to  be  the  glory  of 
God.      Both   the    vicarage  and  the  rectory    where    Miss 
Frere  lived,  like  the  monasteries  of  old,  were  the  resort 
of  all  the  villagers   in  sickness,  and  food  and  sometimes 
medicine  were  supplied  where  it  was  needed.     It  is  not 
for  me  to  speak  of  the  life  at  the  vicarage,  but  I  am  per- 
suaded   that   the   presence  of  a  Christian  family  in  their 
midst  taught  the  poor  many  a  lesson  of  love  and  purity. 
He  was  essentially  a  man  of  prayer,  committing  every- 
thing] to    God,    and   seeking    continually    His    guidance. 


142  WESTMINSTER  dr-  STANFORD-IN-THE-VALE.  [1850— 

His  manner  in  church  and  at  Holy  Communion  was  as 
one  absorbed  in  eternal  things.  My  wife  remembers  that 
being  on  one  occasion  at  the  vicarage  he  came  in  with  the 
intelligence  of  the  death  of  the  Prince  Consort,  and  called 
upon  all  who  were  present  to  kneel  down  and  ask  God  to 
comfort  and  strengthen  the  Queen  in  her  hour  of  sorrow. 
I  ever  found  him  readily  accessible.  He  would  encourage 
me  to  come  to  him  at  any  time  when  I  wished  to  consult 
him,  and  he  would  break  off  at  once  from  his  writing  and 
discuss  the  matter  in  hand,  and  before  I  could  leave  the 
room  take  up  his  pen  again  as  if  he  had  never  laid  it  down. 
His  diligence  was  most  remarkable.  I  think  he  was  in  his 
study  every  morning  by  six  o'clock.  As  rural  dean  he 
held  four  Chapters  during  the  year,  and  on  two  of  them 
the  churchwardens  were  invited  to  be  present,  when 
different  subjects  of  Church  interest  were  discussed.  On 
such  occasions  his  courtesy  to  all  was  very  marked,  a  kind 
word  being  found  for  every  one. 

Believe  me. 

Yours  affectionately, 

Lewin  G.  Maine. 

Dr.  Wordsvi^orth's  preaching,  which  at  Stanford 
was  generally  from  notes,  often  written  on  the  back 
of  a  letter,  was  always  accompanied  with  a  good  deal 
of  action.  One  farmer,  when  remonstrated  with  for 
complaining  of  the  cold  in  the  church,  replied,  "Ah, 
but  you  gentlemen  don't  feel  the  cold  as  we  do,  you 
take  a  good  deal  of  gentle  exercise  in  church." 

And  here  we  must  take  occasion  to  note  the  very 
deep  debt  of  gratitude  which  Dr.  Wordsworth,  in 
common  with  many  others,  owed  to  the  influence  and 
example  of  the  Bishop  of  Oxford  at  that  time.  No 
one  who  recalls  those  days  will  ever  forget  the  magical 


—1 868.]     INFLUENCE  OF  BISHOP  WILBERFORCE.         143 

effect  of  his  presence — like  the  coming  of  spring  to  a 
winter  landscape — in  the  little  nooks  and  corners  of 
that  agricultural  county,  his  thrilling  confirmation 
addresses,  his  cordial  appreciation  of  what  was  done 
by  others,  the  brilliant  wit  of  his  conversation,  the 
inimitable  tones  of  his  wonderfully-modulated  voice, 
and  the  fascination  of  his  look  and  manner. 

How  much  of  the  poetry,  life,  and  enthusiasm 
of  Church  work  is  due  to  Bishop  Wilherforce  ;.  how 
much  also  of  its  organization  and  practical  develop- 
ment !  And  it  was  a  happy  thing  for  the  future 
Bishop  of  an  agricultural  diocese  like  Lincoln  that  his 
work  at  Stanford  brought  him  not  only  into  contact 
with  a  poor  and  neglected  country  population,  but 
with  that  kindling  and  stimulating  spirit,  so  far  in 
advance  of  his  age  in  his  conception  of  the  duties  of  an 
English  Bishop,  and  so  marvellously  endowed  with 
the  power  of  carrying  those  conceptions  out  in  active 
life.  It  may  be  added  that  Dr.  Wordsworth's 
power  of  gaining  and  keeping  the  affections  of  the 
yeomen-farmers  in  his  parish  was  something  very 
remarkable.  He  won  both  their  respect  and  their 
love,  and  he  never  forgot  them,  nor  they  him.  This 
was  partly  due  to  the  thoroughness  and  reality  of 
his  character,  partly  also  to  his  genial  kindness  and 
constant  house-to-house  visiting,  a  duty  on  which  he 
always  forcibly  insisted  in  after  years.  That  he 
should  take  pains  with  the  village  school,  which  he 
visited  three  or  four  times  a  week,  was  a  matter  of 
course.     He  was  constant  at  sick-beds  and  death- 


144   WESTMINSTER  &^  STANFORD-IN-THE-VALE.  [1850— 

beds,  and  it  is  needless  to  say  how  his  wife  seconded 
him  in  all  charitable  work.  But  their  endeavour 
was  to  help  people  to  help  themselves,  and  not  to 
pauperize  them,  though  this  was  hard  enough  in  a 
place  where  labourers'  wages  ranged  from  85.  to  \os. 
a  week,  and  where  often  comparatively  respectable 
men  would  be  out  of  work  during  the  winter. 
Scrofula,  low  fever,  and  diseased  joints  were  very 
common.  The  labourer's  food  was  miserably  poor, 
his  stamina  feeble.  "  I  can't  odds  (alter)  it,"  or  "  Us 
can't  rule  'emx  "  (this  generally  applied  to  the  chil- 
dren), were  frequent  phrases  on  his  lips,  or  perhaps 
"  It's  good  enough  for  we,"  or  "  Us  must  bide  as  we 
be."^ 

Nothing  could  be  more  listless  or  spiritless  than 
the  condition  of  the  people.  The  parish  doctor  had 
thirteen  parishes  on  his  hands  and  called  all  the  men 
"  John  "  and  all  the  women  "  Mary  "  to  save  time. 
His  name  was  Mr.  Maskelyne,  and  Dr.  Wordsworth 
used  often  to  maintain  that  "  Mrs.  Feminine  "  (his 
own  wife)  and  the  kitchen  physic  to  be  had  at  the 
vicarage  were  quite  as  beneficial  to  the  patients. 

We  spare  our  readers  the  details  of  parish  work, 
to  chronicle  which  would  be  to  give  vmtatis  mutandis 

^  The  language  of  Berks,  by  the  way,  is  a  thing  quite  -sui 
generis.  The  use  of  "  thou  "  still  survives  to  a  great  extent,  and 
the  final  n  may  occasijonally  be  heard  in  such  words  as  "housen," 
or  a  "  tinnen  "  teapot ;  "  peart  "  is  still  used  for  clever,  "  lese  " 
for  glean,  "  buck  "-basket  for  washing-basket;  "  ])lim,"  of  which 
"  plump  "  is  the  adjective,  is  still  used  for  "  to  swell  "  in  cookery, 
and  the  list  might  be  made  much  longer. 


—1 868.]  WORK  AS  A  PARISH  PRIEST.  I45 

the  history  of  half  the  villages  in  England — clothing 
clubs,  confirmation  classes  (with  which  he  took  un- 
usual pains),  night-schools,  penny  readings,  mis- 
sionary meetings.  Sic.  The  number  of  services  in 
the  church  was  gradually,  not  suddenly  increased, 
and  the  same  rule  held  good  with  everything.  There 
was  no  startling  of  people  by  unnecessary  and  violent 
changes,  but  on  looking  back  a  few  years,  a  slow 
but  steady  improvement  would  be  found  to  have 
taken  place.  He  made  a  point  of  receiving  the 
vicarial  tithes  in  person.  He  employed  the  clerk 
in  a  local  bank  to  make  out  the  receipts,  and  paid 
one  of  the  farmers  (a  churchwarden)  to  assist  him  at 
the  time  of  collection."^  The  tithe-payers  always 
dined   with    him    and   his  family  on  the  day.     He 

■*  As  the  question  of  clerical  rate-paying  has  lately  arisen,  we 
may  add  that  in  the  winter  of  1857  he  printed  an  address  to  the 
rate-payers  of  Stanford,  protesting  against  a  proposed  increase 
of  the  rateable  valuation  of  the  vicarial  tithe.  The  gross  receipts 
had,  in  the  score  years  of  his  incumbency,  averaged  about  257/. 
a  year.  After  paying  a  mortgage  of  about  50/.  to  Queen  Anne's 
Bounty  and  one  curate's  salary,  &c.,  the  vicarial  tithes  "  never 
realized  the  sum  oi fifty  pounds  in  any  year  of  his  incumbency." 
He  had  "  with  forbearance  and  patient  remonstrance  for  five 
years  laid  these  things  before  some  "  among  his  parishioners, 
"  and  for  the  sake  of  peace"  had  "  suffered  wrong;"  but,  instead 
of  having  had  the  legal  reduction  made,  he  had  received  notice 
of  a  sudden  addition  of  nearly  50/.  to  the  already  excessive 
rateable  value.  A  few  days  later  he  circulated  printed  regula- 
tions for  rating  tithe  rent-charge.  As  to  the  payment  of  his 
tithes  themselves,  he  said  that  the  only  complaint  that  a  farmer 
had  ever  made  to  him  on  the  subject  in  the  course  of  about 
twenty  years  was  from  one  of  the  smaller  farmers  who,  on  paying 
what  was  due,  declared  that  he  icas  sorry  that  it  was  not  more. 


146  WESTMINSTER  b^  STANFORD.IN-THE-VALE.  [1850— 

entered  heartily  into  the  Httle  humours  of  the 
occasion,  enjoyed  the  songs,  &c.,  and  would  perhaps 
quote  Cowper's  lines  on  "  Tithing-time  at  Stock  in 
Essex  "  with  an  amused  smile. 

He  was  extremely  simple  and  direct  in  his  way  of 
talking  to  the  poor.  The  present  writer  remembers 
going  to  call  with  him  once  on  a  sulky  welUto-do 
woman,  whose  husband  was  in  a  somewhat  thriving 
business  in  a  small  way,  but  who  with  thorough  un- 
graciousness of  manner  sat  stitching  away  and 
answering  in  monosyllables  all  the  time  of  our  visit. 
He  found  she  was  making  a  bag. — "  Now,  Martha, 
I  daresay  you  remember  that  place  in  the  Bible  where 
it  talks  about  earning  money  to  put  into  a  bag  with 
holes.  It  isn't  much  use  your  sewing  up  that  bag  in 
your  hand  so  carefully,  if  all  the  while  the  best  treasure 
you  have  is  being  wasted.  Some  day  you  will  find 
that  all  the  trouble  you  are  taking  now  is  just  as 
much  thrown  away  as  if  you  tried  to  keep  money  in 
a  ragged  bag,"  &c.,  &c. 

He  thoroughly  individualized  his  people  ;  he  also 
idealized  them.  One  stately  old  man,  he  would 
say,  reminded  him  of  a  Venetian  Senator.  There 
was  a  vein  of  poetry  in  his  nature  which  came  out 
strongly  in  his  life  at  Stanford,  and  his  delight  in  any 
one  who  was  something  of  a  "  character  "  in  his  way 
was  very  great.  Among  these  was  an  elderly 
clergyman  who  had  some  points  in  common  with 
Scott's  famous  Antiquary,  and  whose  conviction  that 
Sir  Philip  Sidney  had  once  played  at  bowls   in  his 


— 1868.]  LIFE  AT  STANFORD.  147 

parsonage  grounds,  afforded  him  as  much  pleasure 
as  the  famous  "praetorian  "  did  to  Mr.  Oldbuck. 

As  a  Rural  Dean  he  had  frequent  opportunities  of 
meeting  his  clerical  neighbours,  with  whom  he  was 
always  on  the  most  kindly  terms.  He  begged  the 
name  of  his  deanery  might  be  changed  to  that  of 
the  "  Vale  of  White  Horse,"  and  insisted  on  having 
a  picture  of  a  white  horse  on  the  outside  of  the 
minute-book ;  and  among  the  agenda  of  the  Ruri- 
decanal  meetings,  inserted  amidst  graver  matter,  is 
a  petition  to  Lord  Craven  for  the  "  Scouring  of  the 
White  Horse"  (1867). 

About  1856  he  purchased  a  lease  of  the  rectorial 
tithes  and  the  lease  of  the  rectory-house,  which  he 
let  to  his  sister-in-law.  Miss  Frere,  who  after  her 
father's  death  had  come  to  live  at  Stanford,  and 
founded  a  home  for  the  orphan  daughters  of  clergy- 
men, in  which  she  was  warmly  supported  by  her 
brother-in-law. 

Stanford  was  his  home  for  the  greater  part  of  the 
year,  except  when  keeping  his  statutable  residence  at 
Westminster.  Had  it  not  been  for  the  comparative 
leisure  which  this  country  life  afforded  he  never  could 
have  found  time  for  one  of  the  greatest  works  of  his 
life,  his  Commentary  on  the  entire  Bible.  Of  this 
more  will  be  said  in  a  chapter  on  his  literary  pursuits, 
but  so  much  of  his  life  at  Stanford  was  taken  up  with 
this  special  study,  the  minutiae  of  parish  work  lay  so 
closely  imbedded  among  the  larger  and  grander 
ideas  which  filled  every  leisure  moment  of  his  mind, 

L    2 


148  WESTMINSTER  ar'  STANFORD-IN-THE-VALE.  [1850— 

that  a  passing  allusion  to  it  must  be  permitted 
here. 

It  is  no  exaggeration  to  say  that  the  study  of  Holy 
Scripture  was  the  great  happiness  of  his  life.  He 
lived  in  it,  he  seemed  to  carry  its  atmosphere  about 
with  him,  and  no  lover  of  natural  beauty  ever  flew 
back  more  gladly  to  the  hills  and  woods  than  he  did 
to  the  pages  of  his  open  Bible.  It  was  perhaps  some 
feeling  of  this  kind  that  made  him  dwell  with  such 
evident  pleasure  on  S.  Jerome's  retirement  at  Beth- 
lehem, though  S.Augustine,  with  his  wider  sympathies 
and  greater  suavity  of  demeanour,  was  perhaps  a 
type  of  the  saintly  character  for  which  he  felt  a  still 
higher  veneration.  As  far  as  this  world's  goods 
went,  he  was,  as  we  have  shown,  rather  a  loser  than 
a  gainer  by  his  country  parsonage  ;  but  no  words  can 
overrate  the  benefits  he  derived  from  it  in  other  and 
better  ways.  Here  it  was  that  his  thoughts  ripened, 
his  family  affection  had  time  to  show  itself,  and  his 
humanity  (if  we  may  so  speak)  deepened  and 
broadened  ;  and  for  the  survivors  of  those  days,  few 
spots  on  earth  are  so  full  of  beautiful  recollections 
and  ennobling  thoughts  as  the  wide,  cowslip-scented 
Berkshire  meadows,  the  blackthorn  lanes,  and  even 
the  dusty,  trivial  village  street  and  hedge-row  paths, 
which  he  so  often  trod,  with  the  message  of  eternity 
upon  his  lips. 

At  the  close  of  the  year  1852,  Dr.  Wordsworth's 
elder  brother  Charles,  then  Warden  of  Trinity 
College,   Glenalmond,  was  called  to  fill  the  vacant 


—1 868.]  THE  TWO  BROTHERS.  149 

see  of  S.  Andrew's.  He  was  consecrated  Jan.  25, 
(Conversion  of  S.  Paul),  1853.  Of  so  near  and  dear 
a  relative  who  is  happily  still  living  it  is  difficult  to 
speak  with  freedom,  and  in  any  case  panegyric 
would  seem  superfluous  of  a  Bishop  whose  work, 
scholarship,  and  character  are  so  well  known.  Yet 
we  may  take  this  opportunity  of  saying  that  in  the 
midst  of  all  his  own  multifarious  cares,  the  Canon 
of  Westminster  (and  the  same  may  be  said  of  the 
Bishop  of  Lincoln)  never  failed  to  take  a  lively  and 
practical  interest  in  the  affairs  of  the  Scottish 
Church.  A  mass  of  correspondence  between  the 
two  brothers,  never  intermitted  for  upwards  of  half 
a  century,  has  been  preserved,  but  bears  too  much 
on  matters  not  strictly  biographical  to  be  inserted 
here.  The  following  sentence  in  a  letter  written 
at  a  late  period  in  the  career  of  both,  to  a  near  con- 
nection of  the  Bishop  of  S.  Andrew's  will  illustrate 
our  meaning : — 

The  Bishop  of  S.  Andrew's  may  not  perhaps  be  allowed 
to  see  the  good  effects  of  his  sayings,  writings,  and  doings,* 
but,  like  other  good  and  wise  men,  he  has  planted  trees 
under  the  shade  of  which  future  generations  will  sit,  and 
from  which  they  will  gather  fruit. 

When,  in  i860,  the  Synodal  Letter  on  the  Eucha- 
rlstic  Controversy,  drawn  up  by  the  Bishop  of  S. 
Andrew's,  and  signed  by  all  the  then  Scotch  Bishops 
(except  one),    appeared,   he   wrote   to  his  brother : 

5  I.e.  in  an  endeavour  to  bring  about  a  reconciliation  between 
Episcopacy  and  Presbytery  in  Scotland. 


1 50    WESTMINSTER  &-  STANFORD-IN- THE-  VALE,  [i 850— 

"  Thank  God  for  the  Pastoral !  It  is  indeed  a 
blessed  manifestation  of  His  love  in  overruling  evil 
for  good."  ■  And  again  he  wrote,  after  the  Episcopal 
'Synod  had  given  judgment  on  Mr.  Cheyne's  ap- 
peal : — 

I  shrink  from  controversy  on  this  most  mysterious  sub- 
ject, especially  from  controversy  in  newspapers,  where  it 
ought  not,  I  think,  to  be  handled  at  all.  In  the  proper 
place  and  manner  I  hope  to  be  able  to  express  my  entire 
sympathy  with  you  and  your  brethren,  to  whom,  I  think 
we  of  the  Church  of  England  owe  a  deep  debt  of  gratitude. 

In  a  similar  spirit,  in  the  note  in  his  Commentary 
on  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  x.  12,  he  refers 
his  reader,  inter  alia,  to  the  "  Bishop  of  S. 
Andrew's  learned  and  valuable  Notes  to  assist 
towards  forming  a  right  judgment  on  the  Eucharistic 
Controversy^ 

We  must  now  resume  the  thread  of  our  narrative. 
In  the  year  1863,  he  was  asked  whether  he  would 
accept  the  Bishopric  of  Gibraltar,  as  the  following 
letter  will  show  : — 

Cloistcj's,  Westmlnsfer  Abbey,  S.W. 

Tuesday  before  Easter,  1863. 
My  dear  Hawkins, — I  am  much  obliged  to  you  for 
your  letter,  and  think  that  for  the  sake  of  clearness,  it 
will  be  better  to  answer  it  in  writing,  rather  than  by  word 
of  mouth.  I  have  no  wish  for  any  earthly  advance- 
ment. I  have  a  Canonry  here  and  a  quiet  living  in  the 
country,  and  should  be  quite  content  and  thankful  to  end 
my  days  as  I  am.  Besides,  I  am  now  fifty-five  years  old, 
and  could  not  expect  to  be  able  to  do  the  work  of  a  foreign 
mission  with  the  same  energy  as  a  younger  man. 


— 1868.]  THE  BISHOPRIC  OF  GIBRALTAR.  151 

At  the  same  time  I  feel  a  deep  interest  in  the  welfare  of 
the  English  Church  on  the  continent,  and  in  the  present 
condition  of  the  continental  churches,  especially  in  Italy, 
Perhaps  also  my  position  in  the  English  Church,  as  a 
Canon  of  Westminster,  might  offer  some  advantages  for 
intercourse  with  foreign  Ecclesiastics  ;  and  the  yearly  re- 
turns to  England  for  keeping  convenient  residence  here 
might  give  a  Canon  of  Westminster  some  favourable 
opportunities  for  reporting  to  the  Church  at  home  what  is 
going  on  abroad,  and  for  promoting  friendly  intercourse 
between  continental  churches  and  the  Church  of  England. 
And  lastly,  in  case  of  a  failure  of  health  and  strength,  a 
person  who  is  a  Canon  of  Westminster  need  not  remain  a 
burden  on  the  Church,  and  might  retire  from  his  office  as  a 
Bishop  without  being  dependent  on  others  for  support. 
If,  therefore,  all  things  being  considered,  the  Spiritual 
Rulers  of  the  Church  of  England  think  fit  that  I  should  be 
sent  to  the  vacant  see  of  Gibraltar  I  am  ready  to  go,  and 
would  endeavour  with  the  Divine  help  to  do  its  duties  to  the 
best  of  my  powers. 

I  am,  my  dear  Hawkins,  very  truly  yours, 

Chr.  Wordsworth. 

P.S.-— I  venture  to  send  the  enclosed,  lately  received 
from  Sicily,  because  it  has  encouraged  me  mainly  to 
write  what  I  have  written. 

Late  in  the  same  year  the  Archbishopric  of  Dublin 
was  offered  to  and  accepted  by  the  Dean  of  West- 
minster, Dr.  Trench,  and  Dr.  Wordsworth  lost  by 
this  means  one  who  had  been  to  him  a  beloved  and 
congenial  friend,  and  one  whose  place  could  never 
be  filled  either  in  the  ecclesiastical  or  literary  world 
of  London.  At  Westminster  he  was  to  be  succeeded 
by  the  Rev.   Arthur  Penrhyn  Stanley,  D.D.     Dr. 


152   WESTMINSTER  &-  STANFORD-IN-THE-VALE.  [1850— 

Stanley's  reputation  had  preceded  him.  As  a  man 
of  most  attractive  personality,  with  a  literary  style 
that  was  almost  unapproachable  in  its  easy,  graceful 
charm  and  freshness,  as  the  favourite  pupil  and 
biographer  of  Dr.  Arnold,  and  the  accomplished 
fellow-traveller  of  the  Prince  of  Wales,  and  as  one 
of  the  most  popular  of  Oxford  professors,  and  the 
historian  of  the  Cathedral  of  Canterbury,  his  claims 
on  the  admiration  and  interest  of  the  public  were  as 
varied  as  his  gifts,  and  in  many  respects  he  pro- 
mised, as  he  proved,  to  be  an  almost  ideal  Dean  of 
Westminster. 

There  was,  however,  another  side  to  his  character 
which  caused  great  and  general  uneasiness — we  mean 
his  views  on  the  Inspiration  of  the  Old  Testament 
and  other  cognate,  subjects  which  no  reader  of  his 
works  could  fail  to  perceive,  and  which  were  re- 
garded with  all  the  more  alarm,  because,  despite  the 
ease  and  lucidity  of  his  style,  his  opinions  were 
sometimes  not  carefully  formulated,  but  conveyed 
in  suggestive  hints  and  almost  atmospheric  miances 
of  expression. 

The  anxiety  at  his  appointment  was  shared  by 
many,  whose  feelings  did  not  find  vent  in  words. 
But,  in  his  own  case,  Dr.  Wordsworth  felt  that  he 
could  not  be  silent.  "As  Canon  in  Residence," 
he  said,  "  I  find  myself  charged  with  the  prin- 
cipal duty  of  officiating  in  the  sacred  services  of 
this  Church,  till  the  end  of  the  present  year.  It 
seems,  therefore,  that  if  there  is  a  call  upon  any  one 


— I868.J  STANLEY  MADE  DEAN  OF  WESTMINSTER.  153 

to  Speak  in  this  matter,  that  person  is  myself." 
Accordingly,  he  produced  a  short  and  telling 
pamphlet,  in  which,  after  gracefully  alluding-  to  his  first 
acquaintance  with  Dr.  Stanley,  when  he  and  his 
co-examiner  had  the  pleasure  of  "  adjudging  to  him 
the  highest  intellectual  distinction  which  the  great 
public  school,  where  he  was  educated,  had  to 
bestow,"  and  expressing  his  sincere  appreciation  of 
the  gifts  and  talents  which  he  had  subsequently  dis- 
played, he  goes  on  to  mention  certain  points  in 
Dr.  Stanley's  recent  writings,  which,  in  his  opinion, 
were  wanting  in  loyalty  both  to  Holy  Scripture  and 
the  Church,  and  likely  to  shake  the  faith  of  his 
readers.  "  I  am  sure,"  he  adds,  "that  if  we,  who 
ought  to  speak,  remain  silent  on  such  critical  occa- 
sions as  these,  we  shall  seem  by  our  silence  to 
approve  what  is  done,  and  make  ourselves  acces- 
sories to  it.  .  .  .  We  shall  shake  the  confidence  of 
the  people  in  the  moral  courage  and  honesty  of  the 
Clergy,  and  shall  render  it  impossible  for  them  to 
love  and  revere  th'e  Church  of  their  country  as  a 
faithful  witness  of  the  truth.  ...  If  the  present 
publication  should  in  any  degree  obviate  such  disas- 
trous consequences  as  these  ....  the  author  will 
gladly  endure  the  pain  which  it  costs  him,  and 
willingly  suffer  the  obloquy  which  he  may  incur 
thereby." 

Dr.  Wordsworth  must  have  been  fully  aware  that 
he  was  thus  not  only  running  counter  to  the  stream 
of  popular  opinion,  but  doing  what   to  a  man  of  his 


154  WESTMINSTER  &-  STANFORD-IN-THE-VALE.  [iSso— 

instinctive  and  hereditary  loyalty  was  even  harder, 
incurring  the  risk  of  disapprobation  from  those  in 
high  quarters  ;  and  it  may  be  said,  once  for  all,  that 
though  quite  independent  of  all  desire  for  future 
preferment,  he  was  keenly  sensitive  to  the  personal 
goodwill  of  those  above  him.  It  was  part  of  the 
love  of  sympathy  which  formed  a  marked  feature  in 
his  character  ;  and  from  that  point  of  view  those 
who  knew  him  best  were  best  aware  that  the  sacri- 
fice, to  him,  was  a  very  real  and  costly  one.  On  the 
other  hand,  we  are  sure  that  there  was  no  action  of 
his  life  which  earned  for  him  more  of  the  respect  of 
many  outsiders  than  the  publication  of  this  pam- 
phlet, as  was  shown  by  the  large  number  of  letters 
of  thanks  and  addresses  received  by  him  at  this 
time. 

The  English  lay  mind  is,  as  a  rule,  very  indifferent 
to  the  niceties  of  theology.  But  an  act  of  moral 
courage  and  unworldliness  appeals  to  all,  and  there 
is  no  doubt  that  some  who  knew  little  of  the  points 
under  discussion  were  much  impressed  by  the 
qualities  which  led  Dr.  Wordsworth  to  write  as 
he  did. 

The  pamphlet  concluded  by  an  enumeration  of 
the  "solemn  engagements  and  stipulations"  re- 
quired of  a  Dean  of  Westminster  before  he  is  ad- 
mitted to  his  place  in  the  Church,  the  subscription 
to  the  Thirty-nine  Articles,  and  to  the  three  Articles 
of  the  36th  Canon,  the  oath  affirming  his  belief  in 
the    paramount    authority    of    Holy   Scripture,   the 


—iSeS.'jDR.  WORDSWORTH  ON  THE  APPOINTMENT.   155 

acceptance  of  the  statutes  of  the  Church  of  West- 
minster, the  Declaration  of  Assent  to  the  Book  of 
Common  Prayer.  "  If  Dr.  Stanley  is  received  in 
the  Church  of  Westminster,  it  will  be  in  virtue  of 
those  engagements  and  professions.  He  will  not  be 
received  on  the  ground  of  his  own  writings,  but  he 
will  be  admitted  on  his  publicly  declared  assent  and 
consent  to  the  Formularies,  and  on  his  subscription 
to  the  Articles  of  the  Church  of  England  ;  and  that 
assent  and  consent  may,  we  would  fain  believe,  be 
charitably  construed  into  a  public  retractation  and 
recantation  of  whatever  in  his  writings  can  be 
shown,  by  fair  and  reasonable  demonstration,  to  be 
at  variance  with  those  Formularies  and  Articles  of 
the  Church.  ...  In  this  prayer  [that  at  the  Dean's 
installation],  when  offered  up  on  Dr.  Stanley's 
behalf,  none  will  join  more  heartily  than  the  writer 
of  these  lines.  May  he  have  strength  to  fulfil  the 
solemn  engagements  which  he  will  then  make ! 
May  he  be  enabled  by  the  Holy  Spirit  to  apply  the 
intellectual  gifts  and  graces  with  which  he  is 
endowed,  to  the  more  confirmation  of  the  faith  ! 
May  he  so  feed  the  flock  committed  to  his  charge 
with  the  wholesome  food  of  sound  doctrine,  that 
when  the  Chief  Shepherd  shall  appear  he  may 
receive  a  crown  of  glory  that  fadeth  not  away." 

Thus  the  pamphlet  closes.  It  is  barely  fifteen 
large-printed  pages  in  length,  and  read  again  after 
an  interval  of  nearly  five-and-twenty  years  appears 
to    us  singularly  courteous  and    moderate  in  tone. 


155  WESTMINSTER  &^  STANFORD-IN-THE-VALE.  [1850— 

As  might  have  been  foretold  it  produced  no  direct 
efiect,  but  indirectly  the  publication  was,  as  we  have 
said,  abundantly  justified.  It  only  remains  to  add 
that  when  once  the  appointment  was  made  the 
social  and  neighbourly  relations  between  the  Canon 
and  his  new  Dean  were  those  of  Christians,  scholars, 
and  gentlemen.  The  Dean's  marriage  to  Lady 
Augusta  Bruce  contributed  not  a  little,  as  has  been 
said  elsewhere,  to  this  happy  result.  Her  deep 
piety  and  large  practical  charity  could  not  but  be 
congenial  to  those  who  had  so  much  of  both  quali- 
ties as  Canon  and  Mrs.  Wordsworth,  and  it  may  be 
truly  said  that  in  ministering  to  the  poor  of  West- 
minster they  found  a  common  ground  for  labour, 
sympathy,  and  prayer. 

All  have  now  passed  to  a  world  where  contro- 
versy is  unknown,  and,  as  we  trust  to  a  state  where 
truth  and  love  are  found  to  be  one  and  the  same. 
It  is  with  unwillingness  that  we  raise  up  even  for  a 
moment  the  ghosts  of  former  controversies,  but  no 
biography  of  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln  could  be  com- 
plete without  some  reference  to  a  step  in  his  life 
so  characteristic,  so  courageous,  and  so  unworldly 
as  that  of  which  we  have  just  given  an  account. 
As  a  specimen  of  the  friendly  and  even  playful  inter- 
course which  subsisted  in  spite  of  many  differences 
of  opinion  between  the  Dean  and  the  Archdeacon, 
we  print  the  following  little  note,  one  of  many  which 
the  latter  has  preserved.  It  refers  to  a  collection  of 
hymns  for  the  Abbey  services. 


—1 868.]     FRIENDL  V  RELA  TIONS   WITH  DEAN.  1 57 

Deanery,  Weshninster. 
My  dear  Archdeacon, — I  have  chosen  three  of  your 
hymns.  In  the  necessity  of  having  hymns  of  which  the 
words  and  tunes  are  well  known,  I  have  been  obliged  to 
give  the  preponderance  to  those  sanctioned  by  custom  and 
familiarity.  But  I  think  that  the  public  may  well  allow 
the  proportion  which  I  have  assigned  to  the  productions 
of  our  own  Archdeacon — the  only  archdeacon,  with  the 
exception  of  Archdeacon  Petrarch,  whom  I  can  call  to 
mind  as  walking  under  the  laurel  shades. 

Yours  sincerely, 
Feb.  21,  1867.  A.  P.  Stanley. 

The  Archdeacon's  reply  to  the  above  w^as  as 
follows  : — 

2u  '^ovv  09  dp^ei^  T?}?  IleTpou  rrja-S'  otKla<; 
'H/jbcSv  Tlerpdp'^Tj'i  iracn  K\eiv6^ — ovk  iyco. 

In  the  same  year  (1867)  an  incident  occurred, 
v^^hich  in  a  different  way  illustrated  Dr.  Wordsworth's 
character  as  strikingly  as  the  episode  recorded  above. 
There  are  probably  not  many  to  whom  it  would  have 
occurred  that  the  best  thing  to  do,  after  having 
been  robbed^  would  be  to  send  a  cheque  to  the 
clergyman  of  the  parish  where  the  robber  was  sup- 
posed to  have  lived,  in  order  that  he  might  teach 
his  parishioners  better  behaviour !  The  story  had 
better  be  told  in  one  of  his  daughters'  own  words  : — 

"On  Sunday,  November  loth,  1867,  we  were  at  the 
Cloisters,  Westminster,  and  I  was  sleeping  in  the  room  over 
the  pantry.  Very  early,  about  four  a.m.,  I  was  awoke  (as 
I  thought)  by  the  sound  of  the  housemaid  sand-papering 
the  fire-irons  ;  I  tried  to  go  to  sleep,  and  after  some  time 
succeeded.     When  next  I  awoke  it  was  to  hear  that  all  the 


158     WESTMINSTER  &;-  STANFORD-IN-THE-VALE.   [1S67. 

plate  kept  in  the  pantry,  my  father's  pocket  Communion 
service,  and  many  other  valuables  had  been  stolen  !  The 
sound  I  had  heard  was,  of  course,  the  thieves  filing  open 
the  plate  drawer. 

''  My  father  bore  the  loss  with  his  usual  cheerfulness,  even 
laughing  over  our  small  discomforts  at  breakfast  in  having 
no  spoons,  mustard  pot,  &c.,  &c.,  and  he  was  greatly  amused 
by  the  thieves  coolly  drinking  the  cup  of  milk  that  was 
always  placed,  over-night,  for  his  early  cocoa  ;  but  what 
really  grieved  "Wvcix  was  the  thought  of  so  much  dishonesty 
and  wickedness  existing  so  close  to  us,  and  his  being  able 
to  do  so  little  to  improve  the  wretched  state  of  things.  His 
great  wish  had  always  been  to  reach  these  people,  as  his 
work  for  the  Westminster  Spiritual  Aid  Fund  bears  witness, 
and  I  think  his  disappointment  was  all  the  more  bitter 
when  he  found  from  whence  the  thieves  had  come  ;  for 
they  were  traced  with  little  doubt  to  a  neighbouring 
parish.  But  he  never  was  down-hearted,  or  gave  up  because 
of  disappointment ;  accordingly  his  first  act,  next  day,  was 
to  send  a  cheque  to  the  clergyman  of  the  parish,  to  spend 
for  the  spiritual  good  of  his  people. 

"  I  remember  we  locked  up  the  house  that  Sunday  (just  as 
we  had  always  done),  and  the  whole  family  went  to  church. 
In  a  letter  to  my  sister  I  wrote  '  we  are  using  kitchen  knives 
and  forks,  and  papa  says  we  are  never  to  buy  any  more 
silver.' — And  we  never  did." 


CHAPTER  VII. 

CONVOCA  TION. 

Before  entering  on  the  episcopal  life  of  Dr.  Words- 
worth, it  seems  desirable  to  devote  a  separate 
chapter  to  his  very  important  work  as  a  member  of 
the  Lower  House  of  Convocation.  This  chapter  is 
due  to  the  kindness  of  one  whose  intimate  know- 
ledge of  the  proceedings  of  that  House  gives  him 
special  qualifications  for  the  task.  We  therefore 
present  it  to  the  reader  with  little  or  no  alteration. 

In  the  year  1850  a  Society  for  the  Revival 
of  Convocation  was  established  in  London,  of 
which  ]\Ir.  Henry  Hoare,  Mr.  Gillett  Ottaway, 
and  the  Rev.  J.  B.  Clarke  (a  Somersetshire  clergy- 
man) were  active  members.  Of  this  Society  Canon 
Wordsworth  was  a  ready  supporter.  At  the  time 
when  it  began  its  labours  very  little  was  known 
as  to  the  history  or  constitution  of  the  Convoca- 
tions, and  especially  of  the  causes  which  had  kept 
them  so  long  silent.  Early  in  the  year  1852 
Bishop  Wilberforce  obtained  a  legal  opinion  on 
this  subject  from  Dr.  Phillimore,  Sir  F.  Thesiger, 
and  Sir  W.  Page  Wood.  These  three  eminent 
lawyers  all  agreed  that  there  was  no  legal  impedi- 
ment to  Convocation  proceeding  to  the  discussion  of 


i6o  CONVOCATION.  [1852. 

matters  germane  to  the  subjects  mentioned  in  the 
Writ  of  Summons,  without  waiting  for  any  fresh 
licence  from  the  Crown.  It  appeared,  in  fact,  that 
the  silence  of  Convocation  had  proceeded  from  the 
disinclination  of  its  Presidents  (the  Archbishops) 
to  allow  it  to  act,  more  than  from  any  direct  veto 
of  the  Government.  But  supposing  the  Govern- 
ment to  have  no  special  objection  to  the  action 
of  the  Synods,  then  it  merely  rested  with  the 
President  whether  or  not  that  action  should  take 
place.  In  the  autumn  of  1852  a  Conservative 
Government  was  in  power,  and  it  became  known 
that  no  opposition  would  be  offered  to  some  discus- 
tions  taking  place  in  the  Convocation  of  Canterbury. 
The  Archbishop  was  supposed  to  be  averse  from  any 
important  action,  but  it  was  thought  that  he  would 
not  be  altogether  opposed  to  all  discussion.  The 
hopes  of  those  engaged  in  promoting  the  movement 
ran  high  when  the  Synod  of  the  Province  of  Canter- 
bury met  at  S.  Paul's,  November  5,  1852.  There 
was  a  large  gathering  for  the  procession  and  the 
opening  service,  in  which  Canon  Wordsworth,  as 
representing  the  Chapter  of  Westminster,  took  part. 
Dr.  Peacock,  Dean  of  Ely,  was  chosen  Prolocutor, 
and  the  Synod  was  adjourned  to  November  12  to 
meet  in  the  Jerusalem  Chamber  at  Westminster. 
During  the  week  which  thus  intervened,  the  leading 
men  of  the  Lower  House  were  occupied  in  anxious 
and  careful  deliberation  as  to  the  best  method  of 
procedure  when  the  Synod  should  reassemble.    They 


i8s2.]  FIRST  ATTEMPTS  AT  REVIVAL.  i6i 


agreed  to  draw  up  a  paper  of  things  specially  needing 
reformation  and  amendment  in  the  Church  which 
should  be  brought  before  the  House  at  its  meeting, 
as  gravamina,  and  having  done  this  with  great  care 
and  at  considerable  length,  it  was  moved  and  carried, 
on  November  12,  that  the  Lower  House  "begged 
respectfully  to  submit  to  the  Archbishop  that  im- 
portant matters  affecting  the  welfare  of  the  Church 
had  been  introduced  into  it,  and  that  they  prayed  his 
Grace  to  allow  these  matters  to  be  referred  to  a 
Committee,  and  for  the  report  of  the  Committee  to 
be  in  due  time  taken  into  consideration  by  them." 
They  hoped  thus  to  inaugurate  the  action  of  the 
Lower  House.  But  the  Archbishop  was  steadily 
opposed  to  this  action,  and  would  not  consent  that 
Committees  of  the  Lower  House  should  be  sitting 
and  preparing  reports  in  the  interval  between  the 
sessions.  Had  it  not  been  for  the  energetic  action 
of  the  Bishop  of  Oxford  in  the  Upper  House  the 
whole  movement,  which  had  been  started  with  so 
much  pains  and  labour,  and  had  given  so  fair  a 
promise  of  success,  would  probably  have  collapsed. 
Had  such  been  the  case  it  is  certain  that  no  one 
would  have  more  sincerely  grieved  than  Canon 
Wordsworth. 

Fully  aware  how  much  there  was  in  the  Church  of 
England  which  needed  amendment  ;  seeing  clearly 
that  there  was  no  way  of  amendment  likely  to  be 
successful  save  by  the  action  of  the  Constitutional 
Synods  ;  he  also  perceived  that  these  Synods  could 

M 


i62  CONVOCATION.  [1854. 


not  safely  act  save  after  careful  investigations  by 
Committees.  He  saw  that  this  alone  could  give  a 
reality  to  the  work  of  Convocation  ;  that  mere 
platform  oratory  at  certain  stated  periods  of  public 
discussion  would  avail  but  little  to  remove  griev- 
ances ;  but  that  carefully  digested  Committee  Re- 
ports made  by  competent  persons,  offered  to  and 
discussed  by  the  whole  House,  and  made  known 
among  the  clergy  and  churchmen  generally,  might 
do  much. 

On  February  i,  1854,  Canon  Wordsworth  was 
nominated  on  the  Committee  to  investigate  the 
privileges  and  modes  of  procedure  of  the  Lower 
House,  and  to  suggest  any  alterations.  Those  who 
are  familiar  with  the  Church  History  of  the  earlier 
part  of  the  eighteenth  century  will  know  how  long 
and  bitter  had  been  the  feud  between  the  two 
Houses  as  to  modes  of  procedure,  and  how  much 
the  usefulness  of  Convocation  had  been  hindered 
thereby.  Atterbury,  with  his  daring  and  unscrupu- 
lous advocacy  of  extreme  Church  privileges,  had 
claimed  for  the  Lower  House  of  Convocation  similar 
privileges  to  those  enjoyed  by  the  Lower  House  of 
Parliament,  and  had  striven  to  emancipate  it  alto- 
gether from  the  authority  of  the  President.  No  one 
knew  better  than  Canon  Wordsworth  that  this  was 
altogether  a  false  view  to  take  of  the  position  of  the 
Lower  House  ;  that  in  fact  it  was  not  a  separate 
House  at  all,  but  a  part  of  the  general  body,  detached 
for  purposes  of  convenience,  but  having  no  status  of 


iSs4.]  PRIVILEGES  OF  LOWER  HOUSF.  163 


its  own,  its  members  being  merely  assessors  of  the 
Archbishop.  But  while  Canon  Wordsworth  was 
prepared  to  uphold  this  constitutional  view,  he  was 
by  no  means  disposed  to  forget  that  the  House  of 
Presbyters  thus  detached  from  the  President's  House 
and  allowed  to  sit  separately,  and  deliberate  under  a 
chairman  of  its  own,  had  acquired,  and  doubtless  pos- 
sessed, certain  privileges,  through  immemorial  custom, 
of  which  it  behoved  it  to  be  very  jealous.  Of  these 
privileges  the  most  valuable  was  that  each  member 
of  the  House  had  the  right  of  bringing  before  the 
entire  House,  and  having  presented  to  the  President 
any  special  grievance,  hardship,  or  injustice  of  which 
he  had  become  cognizant,  and  of  which  he  desired 
the  reformation.  These  schedules  of  gra-javiina,  as 
they  were  termed,  might  be  presented  as  the  griev- 
ance of  a  single  person,  or,  if  the  House  pleased  to 
adopt  them,  as  the  general  complaint  of  the  whole 
body,  in  which  case  they  acquired  the  name  of 
articuli  cleri. 

At  the  beginning  of  Convocation  there  was  a  good 
deal  of  misconception  about  these  matters,  and 
accordingly  we  find  that  on  February  i,  1854, 
Canon  Wordsworth  moved  for  a  Committee  to  be 
appointed  to  consider  any  schedule  of  gravamina 
which  might  be  presented  to  the  House,  or  which 
might  be  referred  to  it  by  the  House,  and  to 
report  on  them.  The  object  of  the  formation  of 
the  Committee  was  to  prevent  any  unfitting  com- 
plaints being  carried  to  the  President,  and  to  assist 

M   2 


i64  CONVOCATION  [1854 


in  formulating  any  about  which  a  difficulty  might 
arise.  In  addition  to  his  appointment  on  these 
two  Committees,  which  sprang  ,out  of  the  action  of 
the  Lower  House  itself,  we  find  Canon  Wordsworth 
in  this  session  also  nominated  on  a  very  important 
Committee  which  had  been  ordered  by  the  Upper 
House  to  consider  the  best  means  of  adapting  the 
rules  of  the  Church  to  her  present  necessities. 

The  Report  of  this  Committee  is  remarkable 
as  having  recommended  almost  all  the  changes  which 
have  been  since  carried  out,  viz.  the  division  of  the 
services,  the  construction  of  a  new  Table  of  Lessons 
for  a  third  service,  the  shorter  order  of  Daily  Prayer, 
Occasional  services,  the  change  of  the  Twenty-ninth 
Canon.  The  Report  also  recommended  the  extension 
of  the  Diaconate  to  literate  persons  who  should  under- 
take to  serve  five  years,  clergy-houses,  guilds,  missions, 
and  an  extension  of  the  Episcopate. 

When  these  matters  came  on  for  discussion  in 
the  Lower  House,  somewhat  of  a  stormy  debate 
ensued.  The  excessive  conservatism  which  ani- 
mated men  like  the  late  Dr.  Jebb  and  Arch- 
deacon Denison,  prompted  them  to  refuse  to  accept 
the  smallest  alteration  of  the  Rubrics  or  any  other 
suggestion  of  change  in  the  Book  of  Common 
Prayer.  Dr.  Wordsworth  on  this  occasion,  as  on 
many  others,  came  forth  as  an  advocate  of  a  middle 
course.  He  proposed  the  insertion  in  the  address 
to  her  Majesty  of  an  expression  of  the  desire 
of    Convocation    to  receive    a    licence  to    treat  on 


1854-]       DISCUSSION  ON  CHURCH  DISCIPLINE.  165 


the  changes  proposed  in  the  Church  services,  it 
being  understood  that  the  Prayer  Book  should  be 
preserved  in  its  integrity.  It  had  been  argued  by 
the  opponents  of  the  resolutions  that  Convocation 
ought  not  to  act,  it  being  only  an  imperfect  represen- 
tation of  the  clergy.  Dr.  Wordsworth  showed  that 
this  had  not  prevented  it  from  acting  in  important 
matters  in  former  times,  and  he  specially  deprecated 
the  idea  of  trying  to  get  Convocation  altered  by  Act 
of  Parliament,  which  would  be  fatal  to  its  consti- 
tutional character.  Before  the  session  ended  a  very 
important  discussion,  took  place  on  the  question  of 
Clergy  Discipline,  on  a  report  sent  down  from  the 
bishops.  Much  objection  was  generally  felt  to  the 
settlement  made  by  the  Act  of  1840,  and  a  still 
greater  objection  to  the  Act  of  William  IV.,  which 
transferred  the  hearing  of  final  appeals  in  matters  of 
doctrine  from  the  Queen  in  Chancery  to  the  Queen 
in  Council.  It  was  pointed  out  in  the  Report  of  the 
Bishops  that  this  had  been  done  "almost  accidentally,'' 
and  it  was  proposed  that  in  cases  of  appeal  the  matter 
should  be  remitted  to  the  Archbishop's  Court  for 
re-hearing  ;  the  judge  of  the  Provincial  Court  being 
in  that  case  associated  with  other  ecclesiastical  and 
common  law  judges.  In  opposition  to  this  it  was 
moved  by  Archdeacon  Denison  that  in  the  hearing 
of  matters  of  final  appeal  in  causes  ecclesiastical  there 
should  always  be  eight  bishops  present. 

It  does  not  appear  that  Canon  Wordsworth  spoke 
on  this  question,    in    which    v/e    know    from    other 


i66  CONVOCATION.  [1856. 

sources  that  he  always  took  a  most  Hvely  interest, 
and  which  indeed  is  the  great  question  for  the  Church 
of  to-day  still  awaiting  solution.  Both  of  the  con- 
flicting proposals  had  in  them  much  of  which  he 
would  approve,  and  it  is  hard  to  say  on  which  side 
his  vote  would  have  been  given.  Archdeacon  Deni- 
son's  proposal  was  negatived.  But  now  the  Upper 
House,  apparently  not  satisfied  with  its  own  report 
on  Clergy  Discipline,  directed  the  Lower  House  to 
appoint  a  Committee  of  its  members  to  consider  the 
subject,  and  report.  Of  the  new  Committee  Canon 
Wordsworth  was  a  member.  It  presented  its  report 
to  the  Upper  House  at  the  session  held  on  the  15th  of 
April,  1856.  The  report  acknowledges  the  great  and 
surpassing  difficulty  of  the  question  of  the  Court  of 
Final  Appeal,  and  contents  itself  with  setting  forth 
two  suggested  solutions  without  declaring  its  pre- 
ference for  either.  The  first  proposal  was  that  the 
Court  of  Appeal  in  matters  of  doctrine  should  con- 
sist of  the  Judicial  Committee  of  Privy  Council  with 
a  certain  number  of  bishops  and  divinity  professors 
added  to  it  by  her  Majesty's  sign-manual ;  the 
second  that  the  appeal  should  be  referred  to  a  special 
court  constituted  for  the  purpose,  consisting  of 
bishops,  temporal  judges,  and  divinity  professors. 
Perhaps  both  of  these  plans  had  somewhat  of  the 
character  of  nostrums.  At  any  rate  the  putting 
forth  two,  side  Ijy  side,  without  any  expression  of 
preference  of  one  over  the  other  seemed  to  be  more 
like   evading  the  question    than    fairly    meeting    it. 


i8s6.]  SPEECH  ON  COURTS  OF  APPEAL  167 


Such  a  course  was  not  likely  to  commend  itself  to 
Canon  Wordsworth.  No  man  was  ever  more  fully 
persuaded  in  his  own  mind,  or  had  more  distinctly  the 
courage  of  his  opinions.  Accordingly  he  thought 
it  necessary  to  protest,  in  company  with  Mr.  Mas- 
singberd,  against  the  report  offered  to  the  bishops. 
Against  the  first-mentioned  plan  of  Court  of  Final 
Appeal  he  protested,  because  the  tenor  of  our 
constitution  "expressly  limits  the  cognizance  of 
spiritual  matters  to  spiritual  persons;"  against  the 
second  plan  also  on  the  same  ground,  and  because 
in  the  Preamble  of  the  Statute  for  Restraint  of 
Appeals  it  is  expressly  set  forth  that  all  "  causes  of 
the  law  divine"  are  to  be  "declared,  interpreted  and 
showed  "by  "  that  part  of  the  body  politic  called 
the  spirituality."  In  the  debate  which  subsequently 
took  place  on  this  important  matter  in  the  Lower 
House  (the  report  having  been  referred  back  to 
them)  Canon  Wordsworth  supported  in  a  learned  and 
able  speech  the  views  contained  in  his  protest.  He 
was  gratified,  he  said,  that  they  were  now  rather  pre- 
paring to  assert  a  principle  than  to  enter  into  details. 
It  was  undoubtedly  one  of  the  most  important  and 
difficult  questions  which  could  occupy  the  attention 
of  any  man,  especially  of  a  minister  of  the  Church. 
He  then  proceeded  to  take  a  broader  view  than  had 
been  adopted  by  some  of  the  previous  speakers. 
He  did  not  rely  simply  on  the  Statute  for 
Restraint  of  Appeals,  or  on  the  doctrines  of  the 
Reformation  period  ;    he  looked   to  Holy  Scripture 


i68  CONVOCATION.  [1856. 

and  the  general  principles  of  the  Catholic  Church. 
He  would  place  them  "  on  the  solid  rock  and  in  the 
serene  atmosphere  of  primitive  antiquity."  The 
duty  of  Convocation  was  to  bear  witness  to  the 
truth,  however  unpopular  it  might  be.  The  true 
scriptural  administration  of  the  royal  supremacy  was 
"  in  civil  matters  by  civil  judges  and  in  spiritual 
matters  by  judges  ecclesiastical."  The  House  finally 
accepted  an  amendment  to  the  report,  which  em- 
bodied the  views  of  Canon  Wordsworth.  When 
the  subject  came  up  again,  on  the  final  consideration 
of  the  report,  Canon  Wordsworth  endeavoured  to 
insert  some  words  more  expressly  declaring  the 
connection  of  the  Church  of  England  with  the 
Church  of  primitive  times  ;  that  the  Reformation 
was  not  innovating  but  restorative  ;  that  instead  of 
originating  any  new  principle  it  adopted  a  primitive 
principle  transmitted  from  the  earliest  times  ;  that 
the  Church  was  not  in  an  insular  position,  but  in 
harmony  with  the  whole  of  Christendom  from  primi- 
tive times.  The  words  moved  were  well  received 
by  the  House,  but  were  not  inserted  in  the  report, 
as  not  being  held  strictly  relevant.  On  the  whole 
this  important  discussion,  which  had  been  very  ably 
conducted  throughout,  gave  great  cause  of  satisfac- 
tion to  those  who  had  the  interests  of  Convocation 
at  -heart.  In  commenting  upon  it  Canon  Words- 
worth said  he  believed  it  would  be  productive  of 
very  great  benefit  to  the  Church  and  the  realm  at 
large,  and  do  more  than  anything  else  to  commend 


i8s6.]  SPEECH  ON  EXTENSION  OF  EPISCOPATE.         169 

the  cause  of  synodal  action  to  the  members  generally 
of  the  Church  of  England. 

The  Church  still  waits  for  the  happy  solution  of 
the  difficult  question  of  the  Court  of  Final  Appeal, 
and  it  may  be  confidently  affirmed  that  no  arrange- 
ment in  this  matter  will  satisfy  churchmen  save  one 
which  embodies  the  principles  advocated  by  Canon 
Wordsworth. 

In  another  important  matter  which  soon  after- 
wards occupied  the  attention  of  Convocation  we  find 
him  expressing  opinions  on  episcopal  duties  which 
somewhat  startled  some  of  his  brethren,  and  advo- 
cating that  scheme  for  the  extension  of  the  episcopate 
which  he  was  the  first  in  after  years  to  put  in  prac- 
tice. In  discussing  a  scheme  for  Home  Missions  he 
said  :  "  In  my  opinion  one  of  the  greatest  blessings 
to  the  Church  would  be  that  the  bishops  should  be 
withdrawn  from  the  arena  of  politics.  I  do  not 
mean  withdrawn  altogether  from  the  House  of 
Lords,"  but,  by  the  adoption  of  the  system  of 
rotation,  compelled  in  the  earlier  years  of  their 
episcopate  to  remain  in  their  dioceses,  or  (as  the 
Canon  puts  it),  instead  of  serving  in  "the  House 
of  Lords"  to  serve  in  "the  House  of  the  Lord." 
At  the  sam.e  time  he  also  supported  strongly  the 
recommendation  for  the  appointment  of  suffragan 
bishops  under  the  Act  of  Henry  VIII.  In  the  dis- 
cussion on  the  same  subject  Canon  Wordsworth 
bore  emphatic  testimony  to  the  success  of  the  special 
services   then  newly  instituted  in  the  nave  of  West- 


I70  CONVOCATION.  [1859. 

minster  Abbey.  The  congregations,  he  said,  con- 
sisted chiefly  of  artisans  who  came  In  hundreds  and 
thousands,  and  brought  their  wives  and  families  with 
them. 

The  Convocation  of  1857  ^^^  dissolved  in  April, 
1859,  and  a  new  Convocation  met  on  the  ist  of 
June,  1859.  The  Dean  of  Bristol,  who  had  acted 
as  pro-Prolocutor  during  the  illness  of  the  Dean  of 
Ely,  was  now  proposed  as  Prolocutor,  but  some  of 
the  members  were  anxious  to  obtain  the  services  of 
Canon  Wordsworth.  He  was  proposed,  without  his 
own  knowledge,  by  Canon  Selwyn,  and  seconded  by 
Dr.  Jebb.  He  declined,  however,  to  allow  his  name  to 
go  to  the  poll,  desiring  now,  as  he  always  did,  to  avoid 
everything  likely  to  lead  to  contention  or  division.  In 
this  Convocation  an  important  discussion  took  place 
on  the  subject  of  Church  Rates,  now  seriously 
threatened.  Canon  Wordsworth  expressed  a  very 
strong  opinion  that  these  rates  were  "  a  part  of  the 
royalty  of  Christ  our  Saviour,  a  part  of  His  royalties 
established  for  the  propagation  of  His  true  doctrine, 
the  maintenance  of  His  true  reliofion,  and  the  instruc- 
tlon  of  His  poor."  At  the  same  time  he  urged  that 
the  true  way  to  preserve  them  was  to  provide  more 
accommodation  In  our  churches  for  the  poor,  who 
were  almost  shut  out  of  them,  especially  in  towns. 
He  spoke  with  high  appreciation  of  the  work  done 
by  dissenters,  of  whom  he  said  :  "  They  are  brethren, 
for  they  agree  with  us  In  almost  as  many  things  as 
they  differ  from  us  in,  and  I  look  upon  the  dissenter 


1 859-]  PROPOSED  A  L  TERA  TION  OF  PR  A  YER-BOOK.      171 

as  a  member  of  the  Church — an  unsound  member  no 
doubt — but  a  member  not  to  be  amputated,  but  to 
be  reduced  by  judicious  and  loving  treatment  to 
soundness."  The  exciting  topic  of  proposed  altera- 
tions in  the  Prayer  Book,  then  frequently  being 
brought  before  the  House  of  Lords,  naturally  stirred 
the  feelings  of  churchmen,  who  saw  how  utterly 
disastrous  to  the  Church  of  England  would  be  even 
the  smallest  alteration  in  that  book  made  by  the  lay 
authority.  Dr.  Wordsworth  expressed  his  views 
with  much  earnestness. 

"  What  are  we  here  for,"  he  asked,  "  but  to  defend  our 
doctrine  and  discipline?  And  if  we  pass  by  such  a 
question  as  this,  I  think  it  will  be  said  that  we  had  better 
be  disfranchised  and  let  the  work  be  done  out  of  doors, 
without  the  direction  of  Convocation.  Our  forefathers 
transmitted  that  Prayer  Book  to  us,  and  we  hope  by  God's 
blessing  to  transmit  it  to  our  latest  posterity." 

The  same  devotion  to  the  Prayer  Book  led  Canon 
Wordsworth  to  be  very  unwilling  to  accept  certain 
new  forms  of  service  with  prayers  not  found  in  the 
Prayer  Book  which  at  this  time  were  engaging  the 
attention  of  Convocation.  Of  these  the  Harvest 
Thanksgiving  Service  has  since  been  generally 
adopted,  but  it  is  almost  universally  admitted  now 
that  many  more  special  services  are  needed,  and  it 
becomes  a  question  whether  these  can  be  constructed 
without  introducing  matter  not  in  the  present  Book 
of  Common  Prayer.  In  Dr.  Wordsworth's  view  such 
a  proceeding  by  Convocation  needed  to  be  most 
carefully  guarded. 


172  CONVOCA  TION.  [  1 86 1 . 


"  In  my  mind,"  he  said,  "  it  would  indeed  be  a  misfortune, 
deeply  to  be  regretted,  if  Convocation  in  these  days  were 
to  present  itself  before  the  public  in  the  character  of  a 
manufactory  of  prayers  y 

In  1 86 1  the  very  important  and  exciting  question 
of  "  Essays  and  Reviews  "  came  before  the  Convo- 
cation of  Canterbury.  The  bishops  had,  outside  the 
Convocation,  censured  the  book,  but  to  many  this 
seemed  to  be  insufficient.  It  was  no  formal  expres- 
sion of  the  voice  of  the  Church  of  England,  and  no 
authoritative  condemnation  of  the  mischievous  views 
contained  in  the  volume.  Consequently  it  was 
desired  by  many  members  of  the  Lower  House  to 
urge  forward  some  more  formal  measures  against 
the  book.  Convocation  had  an  undoubted  right  to 
censure  an  heretical  book,  a  right  which  had  been 
frequently  exercised.  Dr.  Jelf,  therefore,  on  the 
26th  of  February,  1861,  moved  in  an  elaborate 
speech  an  address  to  the  President  and  Bishops, 
calling  upon  them  to  proceed  to  give  their  attention 
to  the  book  styled  "  Essays  and  Reviews,"  with  a 
view  to  taking  synodical  action  thereon,  inasmuch  as 
the  book  contained  in  the  judgment  of  the  House 
many  erroneous  doctrines.  He  supported  his  pro- 
posal by  a  number  of  extracts  from  the  volume,  and 
his  motion  was  seconded  by  Dr.  McCaul.  Canon 
Wordsworth  was  not  prepared  to  accept  this  motion. 
Probably  no  one  in  the  Convocation  had  a  greater 
dislike  of  many  of  the  opinions  advanced  in  this  volume 
than  he  had,  but  he  did   not  approve  of  the  special 


i86i.]        ESSAYS  AND  REVIEIVS.—SPONSORS.  17: 


method  of  animadverting  upon  it  advocated  by  Dr. 
Jelf.  In  his  view  the  condemnation  already  pub- 
lished by  the  bishops  precluded  their  being  asked 
asfaln  to  censure  the  book. 

"We  have,"  he  said,  "this  great  censure  published  to 
the  world  ;  we  see  in  the  newspapers  the  unanimous 
condemnation  by  the  English  Episcopate,  and  it  has  been 
published  by  the  desire  of  his  Grace  the  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury.  We  are  entirely  without  precedent  of  any 
course  of  proceeding  by  synodical  declaration.  But  as 
we  have  this  unanimous  condemnation  of  the  book,  we 
might  declare  our  adhesion  to  that  condemnation/' 

This  course  he  held  to  be  sufficient,  and  he  moved 
an  amendment  accordingly  to  Dr.  Jelf's  motion. 
The  amendment  was  carried  by  a  large  majority. 
It  appears  to  be  somewhat  of  a  feeble  way  of  deahng 
with  the  question,  but  weighty  reasons  might  doubt- 
less be  alleged  in  its  favour. 

On  the  question  of  the  alteration  of  the  Twenty- 
ninth  Canon,  which  had  been  referred  to  the  Con- 
vocation by  Royal  Licence,  Dr.  Wordsworth  took  a 
strong  view  on  the  amendments  agreed  to  by  the 
Upper  House,  which  sanctioned  the  admission  of 
parents  as  sponsors.  He  was  entirely  opposed  to  this 
change,  and  delivered  an  extremely  able  and  learned 
speech  in  support  of  his  views.  On  the  other  side  it 
was  urged  by  Canon  Harold  Browne  and  Mr.  Kenna- 
way  that  the  testimony  of  antiquity  was  in  favour  of 
allowing  parents  to  present  their  children,  and  one  is 
inclined  to  sympathize  with  the  remark  made  by  Sir 
Henry  Thompson,  that  he  had  heard  such  powerful 


1 74  CON  VOCA  TION.  [  1 86 1 . 


arguments  and  learned  expositions  of  the  law  on  one 
side  and  the  other  that  he  felt  free  to  follow  his  own 
judgment  upon  a  common-sense  view  of  the  ques- 
tion before  the  House.  Dr.  Wordsworth  had  felt  so 
strongly  about  this  matter  that  he  had  written  a 
pamphlet  in  support  of  his  views.  Ultimately,  how- 
ever, he  acquiesced  in  a  form  of  the  Canon  which 
allowed  parents  to  become  sponsors  when  no  others 
could  be  had. 

On  the  question  of  legalizing  marriage  with 
a  deceased  wife's  sister,  which  was  then,  as  it 
is  still,  appearing  in  Parliament  from  time  to  time, 
Canon  Wordsworth  delivered  a  weighty  speech 
(March  15th,  186 1).  There  was  no  point  on  which 
he  felt  more  strongly  than  this.  He  held  that  a  change 
in  the  law  would  not  only  be  socially  disastrous,  but 
that  it  would  be  in  open  contradiction  to  the  teaching 
of  Holy  Scripture.  On  this  latter  point  issue  was 
joined  with  him  by  Dr.  McCaul,  and  the  Convocation 
had  theopportunity  of  hearing  two  as  able  advocates  as 
could  be  found  on  the  opposing  sides  of  the  question. 
The  members  of  the  Lower  House  were  so  com- 
pletely in  accord  with  Dr.  Wordsworth,  and  accepted 
so  entirely  his  view,  that  at  the  conclusion  of  the 
debate  he  was  able  to  say  that  he  needed  not  to 
trouble  the  House  with  any  remarks  In  reply,  but 
merely  to  thank  them  for  the  way  in  which  they  had 
received  his  motion. 

On  the  question  of  the  proposed  censure  of 
"Essays  and  Reviews"  coming  before   the    House 


i86i.]  ESSAYS  AND  REVIEWS.  175 

again  (June  21st),  Canon  Wordsworth  found  him- 
self in  opposition  to  those  members  of  Convocation 
with  whom  he  was  usually  in  accord.  It  has 
been  already  stated  that  he  disliked  the  notion  of 
a  syncdical  condemnation  of  the  book,  resting  his 
case  against  this  chiefly  on  the  ground  that  both 
bishops  and  clergy  had  already  prejudged  the  case 
and  expressed  their  condemnation,  and  regarding  a 
synodical  judgment  simply  as  a  judicial  act.  Ac- 
cordingly when  Archdeacon  Denison  presented  an 
elaborate  report  from  the  Committee  which  had  been 
appointed  to  examine  the  book,  and  moved,  "That 
in  the  opinion  of  this  House  there  are  sufficient 
grounds  for  proceeding  to  a  synodical  judgment  upon 
the  book  entitled  '  Essays  and  Reviews,' "  the 
motion  was  opposed  by  Dr.  Wordsworth.  He  was 
careful  to  say  that  he  condemned  the  book  as 
strongly  as  any  one,  but  that  he  could  not  accept 
this  method  of  dealing  with  it.  After  a  long  and 
very  able  debate,  in  which  the  speech  of  Dr.  McCaul 
was  especially  remarkable,  Archdeacon  Denison's 
proposition  was  carried  by  thirty-one  to  eight,  num- 
bers which  indicate  a  considerable  amount  of  timidity 
and  irresolution  among  the  members.  Perhaps  these 
feelings  were  not  entirely  absent  from  the  House  of 
Bishops  also,  for,  after  having  invited  the  Lower 
House  to  consider  the  question  of  the  synodical 
judgment,  they  returned  as  answer  to  their  message 
that  a  suit  having  been  commenced  in  the  law  courts, 
in  which  some  of  them  might  be  called  to  take  part 


176  CONVOCATION.  [1862 


as  judges,  they  thought  it  inexpedient  to  proceed  in 
the  matter  at  present. 

It  would  be  hard  to  find  any  matter  connected 
with  the  development  of  the  powers  and  energies  of 
the  Church  of  England,  which  in  the  last  few  decades 
has  been  so  conspicuous,  in  which  Canon  Wordsworth 
did  not  bear  a  prominent  part.  On  February  12, 
1862,  in  the  debate  on  Sisterhoods,  which  were  re- 
garded with  fear  and  suspicion  by  most  of  the  pro- 
minent churchmen  of  that  day,  Canon  Wordsworth 
said  : — 

For  my  own  part  I  am  not  afraid  to  pronounce  an 
opinion  in  this  House,  that  the  Church  of  England  is  not 
so  destitute  of  spiritual  gifts  as  to  be  unable  to  establish 
sisterhoods  without  approximating  to  the  eccentricities 
and  extravagances  of  the  Church  of  Rome.  There  are 
satisfactory  evidences  of  the  blessing  of  Almighty  God 
upon  the  Church  of  England  in  the  important  work  she 
has  undertaken,  and  I  trust  we  shall  not  separate  without 
some  recognition  of  the  services  which  have  been  rendered 
by  the  instrumentality  of  those  whom  He  in  His  mercy 
hath  raised  up  for  this  holy  work  of  Christian  love. 

On  the  question  of  lowering  the  qualifications  for 
the  Diaconate,  while  those  for  the  Priesthood  were 
raised,  Dr.  Wordsworth  spoke  strongly  against  any 
relaxation,  which  might  result  in  admitting  a  lower 
grade  of  persons  into  holy  orders.  He  pointed  out 
the  mischief  which  had  resulted  in  France  and  Italy 
from  this — that  the  clergy  were  despised  by  the  laity 
— and  that  great  numbers  of  them  abandoned  their 
profession  and  returned  to  lay  life.      He  was  in  favour 


1863.]  HOME  EPISCOPATE.— FOREIGN  CHURCHES.      177 

of  supplying  the  need    in  religious  ministration  by 
an  order  of  lay  readers. 

On  the  question  of  the  extension  of  the  Home 
Episcopate,  Canon  Wordsworth  took  a  most  active 
part.  He  had  been  Chairman  of  the  Committee 
appointed  to  consider  this  matter,  and  in  presenting 
the  report  to  the  House  he  pointed  out  the  insuffi- 
ciency of  the  number  of  bishops  for  administering 
confirmation. 

"  There  are,"  he  said,  "  at  least  8o,ooo  persons  every 
year  who  ought  to  be  confirmed,  but  who  do  not  receive 
confirmation,  and  I  am  persuaded  that  this  is  in  a  great 
measure  owing  to  there  not  being  sufficient  pastors.  I  say 
that  the  children  of  this  country  are  in  this  respect  shorn 
of  their  Christian  privileges,  and  it  is  time  that  the  laity 
took  this  subject  into  their  consideration." 

On  February  13,  1863,  Canon  Wordsworth  made 
a  most  important  speech  in  Convocation  on  the  sub- 
ject of  the  relations  of  the  Church  of  England  with 
Foreign  Churches.  His  intimate  knowledge  of  the 
condition  of  foreign  Churches — a  subject  in  which  he 
always  took  the  greatest  interest — enabled  him  to 
keep  the  attention  of  the  House  unbroken  during  the 
long  recital  which  he  made  of  cheering  facts  and  indi- 
cations of  religious  progress  in  the  Churches  both  of 
the  East  and  West.  He  alluded  to  the  great  interest 
felt  in  the  publications  of  the  Abbe  Guettee  ;^  to  the 

^  Who  represented  at  that  time  in  the  Union  Chritienne  and 
the  Observateur  Catholiqiie  the  Galilean  element  in  France,  and 
whose  valuable  "  Histoire  de  I'Eglise  de  France  "  had  recently 
been  put  into  the  Index  at  Rome.  He  eventually  joined  the 
Greek  Church. 

N 


173  CONVOCA  TION.  [  1 863 

work  being  done  by  Father  Passaglia  in  collecting  the 
signatures  of  priests  against  the  Temporal  Power 
(9000  having  been  already  obtained)  ;  to  the  ready 
sympathy  shown  by  the  Eastern  Churches  with  our 
own  communion  ;  while  at  the  same  time  he  strongly 
denounced  the  inadequate  and  feeble  way  in  which 
the  Church  of  England  was  represented  on  the 
Continent,  and  advocated  more  distinct  advances 
towards  unity. 

"  We  must  not  be  content  to  speak  by  societies,"  he 
said.  "  We  must  speak  as  a  Church.  We  must  hold  out 
synodically  a  helping  hand  to  other  Churches  in  their 
difficulties,  as  they  helped  us  in  ours.  There  is  one  way 
by  which  we  might  do  much  good,  namely  by  printing, 
with  the  authority  of  Convocation,  an  edition  of  the  Prayer 
Book  in  the  Latin  tongue,  for  the  use  of  priests.  I  do  not 
shrink  from  the  Vulgate,  and  I  would  take  the  Psalms,  the 
Epistles,  and  Gospels  from  that  translation,  which  I  think 
is  one  of  the  best  in  the  world.  This  may  do  much  to 
consolidate  the  basis  of  the  whole  Western  Church.  The 
time  may  come  when  the  Churches  of  Italy  may  be  de- 
livered from  the  burdens  which  now  oppress  them." 

This  speech  produced  a  very  marked  effect  upon 
the  House.  Chancellor  Massingberd,  rising  soon 
after,  "feared  to  weaken  the  effect  of  that  eloquent 
address  to  which  we  have  listened  with  so  much 
delight,"  and  said  "  that  as  he  listened  to  the  speech 
of  Canon  Wordsworth  he  could  not  help  reflecting 
that  if  the  glorious  prospect  he  so  eloquently  opened 
should  be  realized,  what  would  be  the  feelings  with 
which  the  Christian  world  would  regard  the  conduct 


i864.]  DR.  McCAUL.— ELECTION  OF  PROLOCUTOR.        179 

of  our  own  Reformers  and  the  work  which  they 
effected  ?  "  That  broad  and  diffusive  Christian  charity 
and  love  which  enabled  Dr.  Wordsworth  to  take  so 
lively  an  interest  in  the  struggles  and  trials  of  other 
Churches,  was  equally  manifest  in  him  with  regard 
to  divines  of  his  own  day  with  whom  he  did  not  fully 
symbolize.  When  the  Lower  House  of  Convocation 
had  to  deplore  the  loss  of  Dr.  McCaul,  a  man  of 
singular  learning,  eloquence,  and  power,  but  who  was 
often  opposed  to  Canon  Wordsworth's  views,  he 
took  the  opportunity  of  paying  a  tribute  to  him  who 
had  passed  away. 

"There  can  be  no  question,"  he  said,  "that  the  memory 
of  Dr.  McCaul  will  be  long  cherished,  for  he  has  proved 
that  sound  biblical  criticism,  which  was  once  the  glory  of 
the  Church  of  England,  is  not  altogether  extinguished 
among  us.  I  am  thankful  to  have  the  opportunity  of 
expressing  our  debt  of  gratitude,  not  to  Dr.  McCaul  but  to 
God,  who  endowed  him  with  the  grace  to  accomplish  what 
he  did ;  and  in  shedding  tears  over  his  grave,  we  should 
raise  our  hearts  in  eucharistic  thanksgiving  to  God  that  in 
the  Church  of  England  He  has  always  raised  in  the  time 
of  calamity,  some  hand  which  has  proved  equal  to  the  crisis." 

In  April,  1864,  the  Dean  of  Bristol  having  resigned 
the  office  of  Prolocutor,  and  Archdeacon  Bickersteth 
having  been  elected  in  his  place.  Canon  Wordsworth 
was  selected  by  the  House  to  present  the  new  Prolo- 
cutor to  the  President.  This  he  did  in  a  Latin  speech 
of  great  elegance  and  beauty,  made  with  scarce  any 
time  for  preparation,  and  this  came  with  the  more 
force    from    him,    inasmuch    as    he    himself,    in    the 

N   2 


CONVOCA  TION.  [  1 864. 


Opinion  of  many  members  of  the  House,  had  been 
held  to  be  the  fittest  person  to  occupy  that  distin- 
guished post.  Archdeacon  Denison,  in  seconding 
the  nomination  of  Dr.  Bickersteth,  said  : — 

"  I  thought  that  Dr.  Wordsworth,  who  by  his  great 
talent  and  ability,  the  important  services  he  has  rendered  to 
the  Church  and  this  House,  and  his  peculiar  position  as 
connected  with  the  Dean  and  Chapter  of  Westminster, — on 
all  these  grounds,  added  to  his  great  knowledge  of  the 
history  of  Convocation,  had  the  first  claim  upon  us  in  our 
selection  of  a  fit  person  to  preside  over  our  deliberations. 
In  a  private  capacity,  as  a  member  of  this  House,  and  with 
the  concurrence  of  some  other  members,  I  applied  to  him 
to  know  whether,  if  elected,  he  would  be  disposed  to  accept 
the  office.     But  he  distinctly  declined." 

In  accepting  the  office  to  which  he  had  been  elected, 
Archdeacon  Bickersteth  expressly  stated  :  "It  was 
only  when  I  heard  that  Dr.  Wordsworth  had  posi- 
tively declined  to  take  the  office  that  I  consented  to 
allow  myself  to  be  put  in  nomination."  Canon 
Selwyn,  who  had  on  a  former  occasion  proposed  Dr. 
Wordsworth  as  Prolocutor,  now  declared  that  his 
only  reason  for  not  again  proposing  him  was  that  he 
was  fully  aware  that  he  would  not  accept  the  office. 
The  reason  for  this  repugnancy  may  easily  be  divined. 
The  Prolocutor's  office,  though  one  highly  honour- 
able, involves  the  sacrifice  of  a  great  deal  of  time, 
while  it  also  prevents  the  holder  of  it  from  entering 
at  any  length  into  the  debates  on  any  interesting  and 
important  questions  which  may  come  before  the 
Mouse.     On    this   ground   the   Church  of  England 


1 864. J  DIOCESAN  SYNODS.  i8i 

would  have  been  greatly  a  loser  had  Dr.  Wordsworth 
taken  an  office  which  would  have  had  the  effect  of 
partially  sealing  his  lips.  In  particular  the  Church 
would  not  have  been  instructed  by  the  great  and 
weighty  speech  which  he  delivered  (April  20,  1864) 
on  the  subject  of  Diocesan  Synods.  In  this  impor- 
tant speech  Canon  Wordsworth  distinctly  declared 
that  a  bishop  could  not  govern  his  diocese  fittingly 
without  a  Synod  at  any  time,  but  more  especially 
at  the  present  time. 

"We  are  forsaken,"  he  said,  "and  to  some  extent 
abandoned  by  the  secular  arm  ;  is  it  not  our  duty  then 
the  more  to  rely  upon  the  spiritual  arm  ?  "  He  then 
spoke  of  the  blows  which  of  late  had  been  dealt  to 
the  Church  by  the  State.  By  the  suspension  of  the 
Royal  Letters  the  three  great  Church  Societies  had 
lost  10,000/.  a  year  each.  The  request  to  the  Crown 
to  sanction  the  Harvest  Service  drawn  up  by  Con- 
vocation had  been  refused.  The  Government  had 
declined  to  sanction  the  establishment  of  the  See  of 
Cornwall ;  though  the  revenues  for  it  had  been 
provided. 

"  The  Church  of  England  has  not  the  power  of  doing 
that  which  is  in  the  power  of  the  humblest  club  in  the 
least  of  our  villages  in  England,  namely,  that  of  increasing 
the  number  of  her  officers  according  to  the  number  of  her 
members.  Let  us  join  with  one  voice  and  one  effort  in 
the  development  of  our  resources,  both  spiritual  and  tem- 
poral, which  is  urgently  required,  not  merely  by  the  spiri- 
tual, but  by  the  temporal  and  political  aspects  of  the 
time." 


i82  CONVOCATION.  [1865. 

Visitations  were  not  of  much  practical  value ; 
Church  Congresses  did  not  really  represent  due  eccle- 
siastical action  ;  something  more  was  required  to  give 
true  expression  to  the  voice  of  the  Church.  The 
faithful  laity  should  be  admitted,  as  was  done  in 
ancient  times.  The  Synod  should  be  held  annually, 
and  the  best  effects  might  be  anticipated. 

"  I  hope,"  said  the  speaker,  "  that  we  shall  have  light 
out  of  our  darkness,  and  that  light  will  be  shed  by  nothing 
more  than  by  the  laity  being  gathered  together  with  the 
clergy,  under  the  presidency  of  the  bishop,  to  consult  with 
regard  to  the  interests  of  the  Church." 

It  has  been  seen  that  when  first  the  matter  of 
Essays  and  Reviews  came  before  Convocation  Canon 
Wordsworth  had  advocated  a  moderate  course,  and 
one  opposed  to  a  synodical  condemnation.  At 
length,  however,  he  became  "convinced  that  there 
were  passages  in  the  book  which  demanded  syno- 
dical censure,"  but  he  would  have  this  couched  in 
the  most  gentle  form,  and  not  voted  until  Dr.  Row- 
land Williams  had  been,  as  he  desired,  heard  in 
defence  of  the  statements  made  in  his  essay. 

In  the  sessions  of  May,  1865,  Dr.  Wordsworth 
appeared  in  the  House  of  Convocation  no  longer  as 
representative  of  the  Chapter,  but  as  Archdeacon  of 
Westminster.  In  this  capacity  he  addressed  the 
House  on  the  i8th  of  May  on  the  subject  of  Clerical 
Subscription.  This  question  had  been  referred  to 
the  Lower  House  by  the  bishops,  an  alteration  in  the 
terms  of  subscription  having  been  recommended  by 


i86s.J  REFORM  OF  CONVOCATION.  183 

a  Royal  Commission.     The  Archdeacon  was  gratified 

at  the  matter  having  been  referred  to  Convocation, 

which  he  regarded  as  a  recognition  of  that  body  by 

the  State,  and  a  "  tribute  from  her  Majesty's  advisers 

to  the  value  of  Convocation." 

"  These  are  omens,"  he  said,  "  of  better  times  for  the 
Church  of  England — omens  that  the  spiritual  and  temporal 
powers  will  work  together  in  happy  harmony  ;  and  the  ties 
which  so  long  have  united  Church  and  State  are  not 
lightly  and  rudely  to  be  severed,  but  rather  to  be  affec- 
tionately cherished  and  strengthened  if  necessary.  I  hail 
this  as  an  emblem  of  hope  that  we  may  be  the  humble 
instruments  for  cementing  and  binding  still  more  closely 
that  union  which  has  hitherto  been  the  strength  of  the 
Enghsh  nation,  the  combination  of  Church  and  State  in 
one  fraternity  of  love,  mutual  affection,  and  earnest  co- 
operation." 

Other  speakers  also  congratulated  the  House  on 
the  recognition  of  Convocation  which  the  reference 
to  it  of  the  new  Subscription  Canons  involved,  and 
the  Canons  as  sent  down  from  the  Upper  House 
were  passed  unanimously. 

The  question  of  the  Reform  of  Convocation  by 
the  enlargement  of  the  number  of  diocesan  proctors 
had  occupied  the  House  at  various  times  ever  since  its 
revival.  In  May,  1865,  a  scheme  had  been  agreed 
upon  by  the  Lower  House  and  forwarded  to  the 
bishops.  Their  lordships  had  entertained  it  favour- 
ably, and  making  some  small  alterations  had  sent  it 
back  to  the  Lower  House  for  their  concurrence.  It 
proposed  that  an  address  should  be  presented  to  her 
Majesty  asking  for   her  licence  to  make  a  Canon 


1 84  CON  VO  CA  TION.  [1866. 

enlarging  the  number  of  elected  proctors  so  as  to 
amount  to  104.  On  this  occasion  Archdeacon 
Wordsworth  expressed  certain  objections  to  the 
course  proposed.  He  was  of  opinion  that  Convoca- 
tion had  within  itself  the  power  of  expansion  without 
seeking  for  the  Royal  Licence  ;  that  as  it  was  cer- 
tainly true  that  the  number  of  representatives  had 
greatly  varied  in  times  past,  according  as  more  or 
less  proctors  had  been  summoned  by  the  archbishop, 
so  now  also  the  archbishop  might  vary  the  number 
according  to  his  pleasure.  Probably  indeed  this 
might  be  so  when  an  archbishop  should  be  found 
strong  enough  to  stand  up  against  all  the  powers  of 
the  State.  Archdeacon  Randall  and  other  influen- 
tial members  of  the  Synod  were  also  of  opinion  that 
the  archbishop  by  his  own  inherent  power  might 
reform  Convocation. 

The  new  Convocation  which  met  in  February, 
1866,  opened  with  an  important  discussion  on  the 
Conscience  Clause,  which  was  then  much  exercising 
the  minds  of  the  clergy.  It  was  thought  that  it 
would  be  eagerly  laid  hold  of  by  dissenting  parents, 
and  that  thus  a  considerable  portion  of  children  would 
be  withdrawn  from  that  dogmatic  instruction  in  reli- 
gious truth  which  most  conscientious  clergymen  of 
the  Church  of  England  think  it  their  duty  to  give  in 
their  schools.  It  was  not  imagined  apparently,  save 
by  a  very  few,  that  its  effect  would  be  just  the  con- 
trary, viz.  to  bring  dissenting  children  within  the 
reach  of  definite  Church  teaching,  and  thus  to  prove 


1 866.]  THE  CONSCIENCE  CLAUSE.  185 


a  most  effectual  aid  to  the  Church.  Regarded  as  a 
matter  of  principle,  and  as  an  admission  that  instruc- 
tion might  be  given  in  Church  schools  without  re- 
ligion, no  doubt  much  might  be  urged  against  it 
with  great  force.  This  was  done  by  the  mover 
and  seconder  of  a  protest  against  it,  Archdeacons 
Denison  and  Wordsworth.  The  former  arch- 
deacon's speech  occupies  twenty-seven  pages  in  the 
"  Chronicle  of  Convocation."  Archdeacon  Words- 
worth's speech  is  much  shorter,  but  not  inferior  in 
power.  Indeed  the  speaker  who  followed  in  oppo- 
sition to  it  besought  the  indulgence  of  the  House  as 
he  was  about  to  attempt  to  reply  to  "  the  most 
popular  man  in  this  assembly,  and,  I  may  add,  the 
most  eloquent  man  among  us."  In  spite,  however, 
of  this  high  commendation  it  is  impossible  not  to 
observe  somewhat  of  irrelevance  in  Dr.  Words- 
worth's remarks.      He  says  : — 

"  The  Committee  of  Council,  by  the  enforcement  of  the 
Conscience  Clause,  puts  it  into  the  power  of  any  unbe- 
lieving or  heretical  parent  to  prevent  the  Church  from 
teaching  the  creed  to  children  in  her  schools.  It  may  be 
said  that  they  do  not  put  it  into  their  power  to  hinder 
the  Church  from  teaching  the  Creed  to  some  of  the  chil- 
dren. True  ;  but  by  hindering  her  from  teaching  it  to 
any  they  commit  her  to  a  false  position.  They  commit 
her  to  a  position  of  neutrality  and  indifference  as  to  the 
essentials  of  Christianity.  They  drive  the  Church  into 
the  worst  of  all  heresies — the  heresy  of  silence." 

Then  follows  a  very  able  argument  in  support  of 
the  Apostles'  Creed,  which  seems  to  apply  rather  to 


1 86  COA^VO  CA  TION.  [  1 866. 

Board  schools,  which  exclude  the  Creed,  than  to 
Church  schools  with  the  Conscience  Clause,  where 
it  may  be  freely  taught. 

The  important  debate  on  the  Conscience  Clause 
was  followed  by  an  equally  important  debate  on 
Ritualism,  then  beginning  to  be  a  burning  question 
in  the  Church.  The  Dean  of  Ely  (now  Bishop  of 
Carlisle)  introduced  the  question  in  an  extremely 
able  speech.  An  amendment  to  the  resolutions  pro- 
posed by  him  was  moved  by  Archdeacon  Randall, 
the  purport  of  which  was  to  move  an  address  to  the 
bishops  that  they  would  take  the  subject  into  con- 
sideration, and  communicate  their  views  to  the  Lower 
House.  This  was  seconded  by  Archdeacon  Words- 
worth, who  spoke  very  strongly  against  ritual  inno- 
vations. 

The  views  then  expressed  by  the  archdeacon 
were,  as  is  well  known,  greatly  modified  in  his  after 
life,  in  which  many  utterances  of  toleration,  and 
sympathy,  and  wise  counsel  for  those  who  held  the 
opinions  now  so  severely  censured  may  be  found. 
The  able  debate  in  the  Lower  House,  and  the 
acceptance  of  the  resolution  moved  by  Archdeacons 
Randall  and  Wordsworth,  led  to  the  appointment  of 
a  Committee,  consisting  of  all  the  most  learned  mem- 
bers of  the  Lower  House,  who  examined  the  rubrics 
with  great  care,  and  issued  a  very  valuable  report 
upon  them. 

In  the  year  1866  the  Anglican  Church  throughout 
the  world  was  much  agitated  by  the  Natal  Scandals, 


1 866.]  CA  THOLICITY  OF  THE  CHURCH  OF  ENGL  A  ND.    1 87 

and  a  request  was  addressed  to  the  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury  by  the  Canadian  Church,  that  he  would 
summon  a  Synod  of  the  whole  Anglican  Communion. 
An  address  from  the  Canadian  Synod  was  also  for- 
warded to  the  Convocation  of  Canterbury,  praying 
that  body  to  support  the  proposed  Synod.  It 
seemed  fitting  that  the  Synod  of  Canterbury  should 
respond  to  this  request,  and  Archdeacon  Denison 
brought  forward  a  proposition  to  that  effect.  Dr. 
Wordsworth,  in  supporting  the  proposal,  made  some 
interesting  remarks  on  the  Catholicity  of  the  Church 
of  England  : — 

"  I  remember,"  he  said,  "  being  in  one  of  the  great  col- 
leges of  France,  and  there  one  of  the  great  teachers  said 
to  me,  '  Where  are  you  ?  You  are  separate  from  the 
whole  world,  toto  divisos  orbe  Britannos!  I  said,  '  We 
are  not,  for  what  is  Catholicity  ?  Catholicity  is  a  thing 
not  merely  of  space  but  of  time.  It  is  God's  centre.  If 
we  do  not  deny  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Christ — that  is  from 
the  beginning — then  surely  we  are  Catholic.  And  if  we 
dwell  in  the  light,  as  He  is  in  the  Hght,  then  surely  we 
have  fellowship  one  with  another.'  But  I  conceive  that, 
inasmuch  as  we  have  this  great  prejudice  which  naturally 
arises  in  the  minds  of  our  weaker  brethren  who  do  not 
analyse  this  matter, — I  think  that  we  ought  to  take  this 
opportunity  of  showing  to  them  that  we  are  oecumenical, 
in  fact,  universal  ;  that  we  have  what  is  most  Catholic — 
unity  in  the  truth  ;  and  if  we  can  show  to  the  world,  at  the 
present  time,  the  Anglican  Communion  giving  the  true 
interpretation  of  Scripture  in  the  formularies  of  ancient 
Christendom  without  any  diminution  or  addition,  then  I 
say  you  present  to  the  world  a  spectacle  which  a  man 
may  rejoice  to  contemplate." 


CON  VOCA  TION.  [  1 866. 


The  report  of  the  Committee  on  the  rubrics  (the 
formation  of  which  has  been  mentioned  above)  came 
on  for  discussion  in  June,  1866,  and  a  very  animated 
debate  took  place  in  the  Lower  House.  Archdeacon 
Wordsworth,  though  he  had  been  a  member  of  the 
Committee,  felt  obliged  to  speak  strongly  against 
some  of  the  conclusions  at  which  the  Committee  had 
arrived.  He  could  not  agree  in  the  assertion  made 
in  the  Committee's  report  that  the  practices  intro- 
duced by  the  Ritualists  had  no  proper  connection 
with  the  distinctive  teachings  of  the  Church  of  Rome. 
Shrinking  as  he  did,  with  all  his  heart,  from  Romish 
superstitions,  and,  it  may  be  added,  knowing  more 
of  their  real  nature  than  most  of  his  brethren,  he 
could  not  tolerate  the  idea  of  any  approximation  to 
such  extravagances  on  the  part  of  the  clergy  of  the 
Church  of  England,  and  he  spoke  very  strongly 
against  some  of  the  ritualistic  practices.  He  pressed 
the  argument  from  the  Act  of  Uniformity,  and  con- 
tended that  it  was  the  law  of  the  Church  "  that  there 
should  be  uniform  method  in  the  administration  of 
the  offices  of  the  Church,  both  in  ceremony  and  in 
substance."  Archdeacon  Freeman  defended  the 
report  in  a  very  able  speech,  and  ultimately,  after  a 
two  days'  debate,  which  did  great  credit  to  the 
learning  and  ability  of  the  House,  the  report  was 
adopted. 

On  the  29th  of  June,  1866,  the  Archdeacon  of 
Westminster  delivered  a  memorable  speech  in  Con- 
vocation.      The    unhappy    controversy    on    Bishop 


i866.]  THE  CHURCH  OF  SOUTH  AFRICA.  189 

Colenso  ,was  then  raging.  The  Upper  House,  in 
reply  to  a  question  which  had  been  put  to  the  Con- 
vocation by  the  Bishop  of  Capetown,  had  sent  down 
to  the  Lower  a  resolution  in  which  it  was  asserted 
that  the  Church  of  England  virtually  approved  the 
action  of  Bishop  Gray,  and  was  not  in  communion 
with  Dr.  Colenso.  This  called  up  the  Dean  of 
Westminster,  who  had  eagerly  defended  Dr.  Colenso 
throughout,  and  who  now,  in  a  speech  of  singular 
power,  but  certainly  many  misrepresentations,  up- 
held the  heretical  divine,  and  pronounced  a  sort  of 
eulogium  upon  him.  There  was  perhaps  no  man 
in  the  Lower  House  so  well  able,  on  the  spur  of  the 
moment,  and  without  preparation,  to  answer  the 
dean's  somewhat  wild  statements  as  Dr.  Words- 
worth. Hie  undertook  the  task,  and  pronounced 
one  of  the  best  defences  of  the  Bishop  of  Cape- 
town's action  that  was  heard  in  that  troublous  time. 
After  a  few  crushing  remarks  on  Dr.  Colenso's 
theology  he  passed  on  to  treat  the  matter  as  a 
question  of  jurisdiction  : — 

"  By  the  declaration  of  the  highest  legal  court  in  this 
land,  the  Church  of  South  Africa  is  no  longer  a  political 
or  legal  institution.  It  has  been  placed  in  the  condition 
of  a  Church  existing  before  the  time  of  Constantine.  It 
must  be  regarded  as  having  the  incidents,  the  responsibi- 
lities, and  also  the  privileges  of  the  ante-Nicene  Churches. 
But  what  are  the  principles  which  are  to  be  applied  to  the 
government  of  such  a  Church  severed  from  the  State  ? 
Is  it  to  have  no  principles  at  all,  or  is  it  not  rather  to  be 
thrown  back  on  those  vital  principles  on  which  the  Church 
of  God  exists — principles  which   it  has  by  the  inspiration 


1 90  CONVOCA  TION.  [  1 867 


of  the  Holy  Spirit  who  dwells  within  it  ?  Is  it  to  have  no 
principles  at  all,  or  to  have  its  existence  crippled,  em- 
barrassed, and  paralysed  by  precarious  judgments  of  a 
tribunal  which  declares  it  to  be  unknown  to  the  law  ? 
Was  it  to  be  unknown  to  the  law  except  to  be  persecuted 
by  the  law  ?  .  .  .  My  very  reverend  friend  has  made  a 
touching  appeal  for  the  Bishop  of  Natal.  A  touching 
appeal  might  also  be  made  for  the  Bishop  of  NataPs 
diocese — for  the  lambs  and  sheep  of  Christ's  flock.  Ought 
we  to  sympathize  with  the  wolf  and  have  no  sympathy 
with  the  flock  ?  Is  it  the  way  to  feed  the  sheep  and  the 
lambs  to  open  the  door  of  the  sheepfold  to  the  wolf  and 
deliver  them  to  the  care  of — I  speak  not  the  word  offen- 
sively— the  hireling  }  " 

At  the  meeting  of  Convocation  in  the  spring  of 
1867,  Archdeacon  Wordsworth  presented  a  gravamen 
on  the  subject  of  Diocesan  Synods,  a  subject  then 
much  engaging  the  attention  of  the  Church.  He 
pointed  out  that  "  Church  Congresses  and  Confer- 
ences, vi^hile  they  shov^  the  need  of  Diocesan  Synods, 
afford  no  adequate  substitute  for  them."  The 
House  was  invited  to  address  to  the  archbishop  and 
bishops  an  earnest  request  that  they  would  adopt 
speedy  measures  for  the  assembHng  of  Diocesan 
Synods.  The  Lower  House  agreed  to  adopt  the 
gravamen  of  Dr.  Wordsworth,  but  a  discussion  on 
the  same  subject  in  the  Upper  House  revealed  the 
fact  that  it  was  by  no  means  a  popular  one  with  the 
bishops.  Their  lordships  had  been  so  long  accus- 
tomed to  act  autocratically  that  they  seemed  to  dread 
lest  these  gatherings  should  introduce  some  limita- 
tion to  their  authority.     The  matter  has  really  been 


1 867.]  PAN-ANGLICAN  CONFERENCE.  191 

compromised  by  the  adoption  of  Diocesan  Con- 
ferences. In  the  debate  in  the  Lower  House  on  the 
answer  to  be  returned  to  the  letter  of  the  Canadian 
Church  advocating  a  General  Synod  of  the  Anglican 
bishops,  a  considerable  amount  of  bitterness  was 
imported  into  the  discussion.  This  was  principally 
due  to  Dean  Stanley,  who  could  never  bring  himself 
to  contemplate  this  Church  action  with  complacency. 
Archdeacon  Wordsworth  came  in  as  a  mediator 
between  the  resolution  moved  by  Archdeacon 
Denison  and  the  amendment  of  Canon  Blakesley, 
that  "  the  House  was  unable  to  concur  in  the  appa- 
rent wish  of  the  Canadian  Church  for  the  meeting 
of  a  General  Council  of  the  members  of  the  Anglican 
Communion  in  all  parts  of  the  world."  To  have 
adopted  this  curt  reply  would  have  been  disastrous, 
and  Archdeacon  Wordsworth  did  good  service  to  the 
Church  when  he  induced  the  House  to  vote  their 
"  earnest  desire  that  the  archbishop  would  be 
pleased  to  issue  his  invitation  to  all  bishops  in  com- 
munion with  the  Church  of  England."  The  great 
gathering  at  Lambeth  of  the  first  Pan-Anglican  Con- 
ference gave  unfeigned  pleasure  to  one  who  ever  had 
the  best  interests  of  the  Church  nearest  his  heart. 
In  equal  proportion  it  offended  those  who  were 
mere  nominal  friends  of  the  Church.  This  small 
faction  endeavoured  to  raise  difficulties  and  obstruc- 
tion when,  at  the  conclusion  of  the  Synod,  it  was 
proposed  to  read  the  Encyclical  of  the  bishops 
in   the  Lower  House  of  the    Convocation.     Upon 


192  CONVOCATION.  [1867. 

this    occasion  Archdeacon  Wordsworth    spoke    out 

nobly : — 

"  I  hope  that  there  will  not  be  a  division  upon  that  which 
ought  to  carry  unanimity.     It  would  be  a  most  unhappy 
and  disastrous  termination  of  what  has  been,  in  my  opinion, 
the  greatest  event  in   the  Church  of  England  since  the 
Reformation,  if  it  were  tarnished  by  anything  Hke  differ- 
ence in  this  house.     Looking  at  the  events  that  occurred 
at  Lambeth,  the  fact  of  so  large  a  number  of  bishops  as 
seventy-six  meeting  there,  and  some  afterwards  giving  in 
their  adhesion  to  the  resolutions  there  passed,  and  every 
one  present  putting  his  name,  man  by  man,  to  that  most 
inestimable  document,  I  confess  I  should  consider  it  a  very 
great  evil  if  such  a  great  victory  as  that  (a  victory  not 
merely  for  the  Church  of  England,   but  for  the  Catholic 
faith)  were  tarnished  by  anything  which  savoured  of  dis- 
agreement   in    the  Lower  House  of  Convocation.     This 
document  ought  to  warm  the  heart  of  every  man  in  the 
Anglican  Communion.     Whoever  disparages  that  letter,  it 
is  not  disparaged    by  the   adversaries  of  the  Church   of 
Encjland.     I  know  from  the  best  authorities  that  the  letter 
is  regarded  by  our  adversaries  as  one  of  the  greatest  acts 
ever  done  by  the  Anglican   Communion.     Fas  est  et  ab 
Jioste   doceri.      Let  us  for  the    proof  of  this   look  at  the 
writings  of  those  who  have  tried   to  criticize  it.     Let  us 
look  at  the  declarations  published,  especially  those  of  the 
Abbe  Guettee,  who  knows  a  great  deal  of  Christendom, 
and  whose  opinion  on  such  a  subject  I  would  rather  take 
than  that  of  any  living  man.      That  learned  abbd  says 
that  the    Lambeth   Conference   has  seized  upon  the  two 
great  sores  of  Christendom,  viz.  Mariolatry  and   Papola- 
try — the  adoration  of  the  Virgin  Mary  and  the  adoration 
of  the  Pope." 

The    archdeacon    also    moved    an    expression    of 
thankfulness  to  the  archbishop  for   communicating 


i867.]  ENCYCLICAL— NATAL.  193 

to  the  Eastern   Patriarchs  the  Encyclical  Letter  of 
the    Conference.      The    translations   of   the    letter 
sent    to    them    had    been    made    by    himself,    and 
when  the  House  agreed,  as  it  presently  did,  to  his 
motion,  the  thanks  of  the  House  were  voted  to  him 
personally  for  his  labours.     The  Prolocutor  address- 
ing him  said,  "  It  is  my  privilege,  Mr.  Archdeacon 
Wordsworth,  to   tender  to  you  on  the  part  of  this 
House  our  thanks  for  this,  which  is  but  one  amongst 
many  other  great  services  you  have  rendered  to  the 
Church."      The    Encyclical   was   then    read  in  the 
House  by  the  Prolocutor,  the  members  all  standing. 
The  connection  of  Archdeacon  Wordsworth  with 
the  Lower  House  of  the  Convocation  of  Canterbury 
came    to   an    end    in    the    midst    of   the    somewhat 
acrimonious  debates  arising  out  of  the  unfortunate 
business  of  Natal.     A  good  deal  of  bitterness  was 
apparent  in  some  of  the   speeches  on  this  subject, 
but  for  none  of  this  was  Dr.  Wordsworth  responsible. 
Never  in  any  of  his  speeches,  though  no  man   felt 
more  strongly  on  Church  questions,  is  there  apparent 
any  trace  of  harsh  and  unkind  feeling  towards  indi- 
viduals.    Consequently  he  was  regarded  with  sincere 
respect  and  affection  by  men  of  all  parties  in   the 
House.     Not  alone  for  his  great  learning  and  his 
wide  acquaintance  with  foreign  ecclesiastical  matters, 
but    much    more    for    the    earnest,    thoughtful,   and 
loving  utterances,   was   he  heartily  reverenced  and 
loved.     One  who  was  associated  with  him  through 
all  his  Convocation  life,  and  as  intimately  acquainted 

o 


194  CONVOCATION.  [1853. 

with  his  work  and  character  as  any  man,  writes  : 
"  I  hold  that  Christopher  Wordsworth  was  not  only- 
one  of  the  most  laboriously  careful,  learned,  and 
able  men  of  our  time,  but  a  man  second  to  none  in 
attractive  power  and  deepest  faithfulness.  I  loved 
him  from  first  to  last  with  all  my  heart,  and  reve- 
renced and  honoured  him  no  less." 

The  followinof  letters  from  Dr.  Wordsworth  to  his 
old  friend,  Archdeacon  Harrison,  on  Convocation 
business  will  illustrate  most  of  the  points  mentioned 
above : — 

On  one  occasion,  in  1853,  at  a  certain  prorogation 
of  Convocation,  some  members  of  the  Lower  House 
assembled  and  found  there  was  no  Upper  House 
formed.  Archdeacon  Harrison  having  written  on 
the  subject.  Dr.  Wordsworth  replied  : — 

Cloisters,  Westminster  Abbey, 

August  22,rd,  1853. 

My  dear  Archdeacon, — Many  thanks  for  your  letter. 
It  is  true,  as  you  say,  Times  are  changed — nos  ct  mtttamur 
in  illis. 

But  perhaps  you  will  recollect  a  fact  which  you  mentioned 
to  us  as  having  occurred  in  the  good  old  times, — that  the 
Prolocutor,  your  Dean,  started  by  the  break  of  day  on 
hearing  the  unexpected  tidings  that  something  was  to  be 
done  in  the  way  of  business  at  one  of  those  meetings  for 
prorogation  (as  was  supposed)  on  which  the  Primate  was 
wont  to  soliloquize  in  Jerusalem  Chamber,  And  how 
could  the  Prolocutor  know  beforehand,  on  Wednesday  last, 
that  something  of  the  kind  might  not  arise  on  Thursday  ? 
In  fact  it  was  reported  (I  think  you  yourself  stated  the 
impression)  that  something  would  be  mooted  by  the  Bishop 


I853-J      LETTERS  TO  ARCHDEACON  HARRISON.  195 

of  Oxford.     It   was,  I  think,  therefore  the   duty    of  the 
members  of  the  Lower  House  to  attend. 

Besides,  we  must  recollect  that  there  is  110  analogy 
between  the  proceedings  of  Convocation  and  those  of 
Parliament. 

This  notion  seems  to  have  been  the  origin  of  all  the 
misunderstanding  and  mischief  between  the  Houses  in  the 
iast  century.  Parliament  may  be  called  together  to  be 
prorogued  ;  but  it  does  not  follow,  I  think,  that  this  is  the 
case  with  Convocation  ;  though  it  is  quite  true  that  it  is 
not  usual  for  Convocation  to  transact  business  in  the 
Parliamentary  recess — as  it  did,  however,  in  1640  under 
Laud  in  both  provinces. 

The  members  of  the  Upper  House  have  a  great  advantage 
over  those  of.  the  Loiver  as  being  cognizant  of,  and  supposed 
to  be  consentient  to,  the  Presidential  Prorogation,  and 
therefore  they  might  well  spare  themselves  the  trouble  of 
attending  on  Thursday — although  Parliament  had  then  two 
days  to  run  before  its  prorogation,  and  therefore  it  was  not 
impossible  or  improbable  that  some  business  might  be 
attempted  in  Convocation. 

But  the  Lower  House  are  not  admitted  to  the  arcana 
of  the  synodical  irpo^ovXevixara,  and  they  must  do  the  best 
they  can  with  the  modicum  of  illumination  that  is  dispensed 
to  them.  However,  though  they  would  doubtless  be  grate- 
ful for  any  additional  irradiation  that  may  be  reflected  on 
them  from  a  higher  sphere,  I  think  they  will  best  show 
their  wisdom  by  not  losing  their  equanimity,  but  take  the 
poet's  advice, — 

"Then  to  the  measure  of  the  light  vouchsafed, 
Shine  ever  in  thy  place,  and  be  content  ! " 

Yours  always,  my  dear  Harrison,  very  truly, 

Chr.  Wordsworth. 


o  2 


196  convocation.  [1856. 

Dr.  Wordsworth  to  Archdeacon  Harrison. 

Stanford-in-the-  Vale,  Faringdon, 
March  loth,  1856. 

My  dear  Friend, — Thank  you  for  the  enclosed. 

(i.)  As  to  the  proposed  Court  of  Final  Appeal,  it  seems 
to  me,  after  the  best  attention  I  can  give  to  the  subject, 
that  it  would  be  very  unwise  for  any  Committee  of  the 
Clergy  of  Convocation  to  propose  propria  inotu  that 
Spiritual  Causes  should  be  determined  by  the  Crown  in  any 
other  manner  than  that  so  well  laid  down  in  the  preamble 
to  the  Statute  of  Appeals,  24  Hen.  VHI. 

To  omit  other  authorities,  with  which  you  are  familiar* 
let  me  refer  to  the  Introductory  Division  of  Bishop  Gibson, 
in  vol.  i.  p.  xviii  of  his  Codex,  and  Ibid.  pp.  xxi — xxiii,  and 
vol.  i.  p.  353. 

Such  a  violation  of  the  principles  there  stated,  as  is  now 
proposed  to  be  adopted  by  our  Committee,  would,  I  appre- 
hend, afford  a  triumph  to  the  enemies  of  our  Church  and 
Reformation — particularly  to  the  Romanists — and  it  would 
perplex  and  dismay  many  who  are  looking  with  hope  and 
trust  to  our  proceedings  in  Convocation. 

(ii.)  As  to  the  Church  Rate  Report,  I  am  disposed  to 
think  that  we  ought  to  take  care  to  leave  Country  Parishes 
alone,  and  not  to  meddle  with  them  at  all  ;  that  is,  we  ought, 
I  conceive,  to  address  ourselves  only  to  the  removal  of  such 
grievances  as  exist  in  the  comparatively  fezv  and  exceptional 
cases  of  la^'ge  tozvns  : — 

(i)  In  such  cases  where  there  is  a  parochial  district 
assigned  under  Peel's  Act  or  any  other,  it  should  be  pro- 
vided that  the  inhabitants  should  be  liable  only  to  one  rate, 
i.e.  not  to  the  Mother  Church,  but  to  the  church  of  the 
district. 

(2)  yXiid  when  town  property  has  been  much  improved 
by  building  or  otherwise,  some  equitable  provision  should 
be  made  against  undue  augmentation  of  the  assessment 
to  the  rate,  by  facilities  of  redemption  or  otherwise. 


i8s6.]      LETTERS  TO  ARCHDEACON  HARRISON.  197 

(3)  I  do  not  much  like  the  plan  on  which  we  now  seem 
to  be  inclined  to  proceed,  viz.  of  putting  forth  the  draft  of  a 
Bill  for  a  neiv  scheme  of  Church  Rates. 

The  advantage  taken  the  other  night  in  Parliament  of 
the  Archbishop's  Bill  shows  that  there  are  many  who  are 
on  the  alert  to  catch  at  any  concessions  on  the  part  of  the 
Spirituality  ;  and  it  is  evident  that  they  would  quote  us  as 
of  great  authority  in  anything  we  may  be  ready  to  give  up, 
without  allowing  us  to  have  any  right  whatever  in  what  we 
may  desire  to  inai7itain. 

Rather,  in  my  humble  opinion,  we  ought  to  deem  it  our 
duty  to  state  temperately  and  firmly  great  principles  and 
truths ;  and  if  we  can  frame  the  documents  on  this  plan 
upon  the  two  great  questions  now  before  us,  we  may  depend 
upon  it  that  we  shall  inspire  the  Clergy  and  the  well-affected 
Laity  with  confidence  in  us,  we  shall  put  forth  a  mani- 
festo which  will  assert  right  principles,  and  encourage  others 
to  do  the  same. 

If  our  documents,  on  the  other  hand,  are  framed  on  the 
lower  plan  of  providing  what  is  palatable  to  Parliament  in 
its  present  frame  of  mind,  I  fear  that  the  present  oppor- 
tunity will  be  lost,  and  our  own  influence  and  character 
will  be  lost  with  it. 

I  am,  my  dear  Harrison,  yours  affectionately, 

Chr.  Wordsworth. 

To  Archdeacon  Harrison. 

Stanford-in-tJie-  Vale,  Faringdon, 

TJinrsday  before  Easter  \March  20th'\,  1856. 

My  dear  Harrison, — Thank  you  for  the  enclosed — 

which  is  much  improved  by  the  application  of  the  Archi- 

diaconal  file.     I  hope  the  same  process  may  be  resorted  to 

in  the  other  Report. 

(i.)  The  separation  o{  the  fabric  from  the  necessaries  for 
divine  worship  seems  to  me  a  very  dangerous  expedient. 
I.  It   plays  into  the  hands    of  those    who    urged    our 


COA'VOCA  TION.  [1856. 


Churches  as  National  buildings  to  be  used  for  any  purpose 
that  the  State  may  propose. 

2.  If  this  is  our  principle,  the  next  step  will  be  that  all 
persons  will  claim  to  have  their  own  religious  services  in 
them,  and  so  our  Churches  will  become  Babels. 

3.  It  proceeds  on  the  unhappy  fallacy  that  stones  and 
not  men  make  a  Church  ;  and  that  the  dead  Church  is 
more  important  than  the  living  one. 

4.  It  endorses  the  dissenting  objections  that  a  Church- 
rate  is  ?i  personal  tax,  and  condemns  all  our  forefathers  who 
have  repudiated  that  notion  as  erroneous. 

5.  It  cuts  the  ground  from  under  our  feet  for  maintaining 
i\\Q  fabric  for  Church  uses. 

For  if  a  man  is  to  be  relieved  from  paying  for  the  per- 
formance of  offices,  on  the  plea  that  he  disapproves  them, 
how  can  we  levy  a  rate  on  him  for  the /rt^rzV  in  which  those 
offices  are  performed  ? 

I  earnestly  hope  that  this  vicious  principle  may  be 
expunged  from  the  Report. 

(ii.)  As  to  the  C.B.S.,"  thank  you  also  for  that — And 
(iii.)  For  the  CO-F-F.^*  letters. 

(iv.)  Have  you  prepared  a  paper  on  Mr.  Hill's  schedule  ?  ' 
With  the  "  Easter-offering  "  of  all  good  wishes, 

I  am,  my  dear  Harrison,  yours  affectionately, 

Chr.  Wordsworth. 


"  C.B.S.  =  Church  Building  Society. 

3  C.O.F.F.  =  Clergy  Orphan  Furnishing  Fund. 

<  Mr.  Hills'  Schedule.— G.  Hills,  B.D.,  proctor  for  the  Arch- 
deaconries of  Norwich  and  Norfolk,  presented  a  Schedule  (June 
29lh,  1885),  in  favour  of  a  Church  Extension  Canon,  requiring 
collections  for  Home  and  Foreign  Missions,  the  Queen's  Letters 
having  been  withdrawn.  "  It  was  moved  by  Mr.  Massingberd 
and  seconded  by  Mr.  Fendall,  that  the  Schedule  now  read  be 
referred  to  the  Committee  of  Gravamina  and  Rt'foriiianda." 
[Warren's]  Journal  of  Convocation,  vol.  ii.  p.  18. 


1856.J       LETTERS  TO  ARCHDEACON  HARRISOX.  199 

The  Bishop  of  Oxford  was  here  on  Monday  and  Tuesday  ; 
he  is  a  good  deal  vexed  by  the  draft  Report  on  Church 
Rates, 

Dr.  Wordsworth  to  Archdeacon  Harrison, 
Stanford-in-the-  Vale,  Faringdon, 
March  27 th,  [18]  5  6. 

My  dear  Harrison, — Many  thanks  for  your  letter 
received  this  morning.  The  Reports  seem  to  have  been 
rather  eager  to  leap  into  hfe  ;  and  it  would  have  been 
certainly  somewhat  convenient  to  have  had  notice  that 
there  would  have  been  no  other  opportunity  for  Jitial 
revision.  Is  it  too  late  to  introduce  a  clause  intimating 
that  some  members  of  the  Committee  are  adverse  to  the 
severance  of  the  fabric  from  the  services  therein  ? 

I  do  not  like  "protests,"  but  I  feel  no  little  pain  in  being 
suddenly  and  silently  concluded  in  a  recommendation 
which  I  disapprove, 

I  was  not  a  member  of  the  first  Committee  which  made 
the  recommendation. 

At  our  Vestry  here  on  Easter  Monday,  we  agreed  to  the 
enclosed ;  and  I  believe  that  with  a  little  effort  similar 
petitions  might  be  sent  from  the  vast  majority  of  parishes 
in  the  kingdom. 

I  am,  my  dear  Archdeacon,  yours  affectionately, 

Chr.  Wordsworth. 

I  wish  you  would  publish  a  cheap  edition  of  your 
Charge  on  Church  Rates — or  the  substance  thereof — 
"  ad  populum." 

As  a  picture  of  what  Dr.  Wordsworth  was  after 
he  had  become  a  Bishop  in  the  Upper  House  of 
Convocation,  vi^e  present  to  our  readers  the  following 
graphic  letter  from  the  Bishop  of  Peterborough  : — 

My  dear  Canon  Wordsworth, — You  ask  me  to  give 
you  my  impressions  and  recollections  of  my  dear  friend, 


CONVOCA  TION.  ^1856. 


your  late  father,  as  I  knew  him  in  Episcopal  Conference 
and  in  Convocation.  They  may  be  summed  up  in  three 
words — Learning,  Humility,  Saintliness.  His  store  of 
knowledge  upon  every  subject  that  arose  in  our  discussions 
seemed  to  me  inexhaustible,  and  yet  so  readily  available 
that  it  used  to  flow  from  his  lips  without  any  apparent 
effort  of  recollection  or  any  apparent  consciousness  that  it 
was  more  than  the  ordinary  information  which  his  hearers 
shared  equally  with  himself. 

Decrees  of  Councils,  writings  of  Fathers,  events  in 
remoter- or  nearer  Church  History,  Proceedings  of  Convo- 
cations, Acts  of  Parliament,  Canons,  Rubrics,  customs  of 
our  own  or  of  other  Churches,  all  seemed  alike  familiar  to 
him  as  he  cited  them  in  their  turn  and  brought  them  to 
bear  aptly  and  forcibly  upon  the  questions  of  the  hour. 
He  really  seemed  as  if  he  had  not  merely  lived,  but  was 
actually  living  in  the  far-away  times  he  was  referring  to. 
He  would  talk  to  us  of  the  doings  at  Nice  and  Ephesus,  or 
at  Hampton  Court  or  the  Savoy,  as  if  he  had  just  stepped 
in  amongst  us  from  those  councils,  and  was  telling  us  of 
yesterday's  discussions  there.  He  was  in  all  our  confer- 
ences the  scribe  well  instructed,  who  brought  out  of  his 
treasure  things  new  and  old.  But  he  seemed  to  us  always 
to  think  "  the  old  was  better."  Certainly  he  knew  it  better 
than  most  of  us.  And  yet  his  intimate  acquaintance  with 
the  past  never  had  the  effect  of  estranging  him  from  the 
present.  He  was  as  full  of  keen  and  thoughtful  interest  in 
all  the  questions  and  controversies  of  our  own  day  as  if  he 
had  known  nothing  else  beside  these.  Nothing,  especially 
that  concerned  the  Church  of  England,  ever  seemed  to  be 
in  his  eyes  little  or  unimportant.  I  have  sometimes 
listened  to  him  with  a  feeling  of  almost  amused  admira- 
tion, as  he  employed  all  the  resources  of  his  learning  in 
elucidating  some  such  small  questions  as  that  of  the  proper 
hoods  for  graduates  of  theological  colleges,  or  the  rival 
claims  of  Church  dignitaries  for  precedence  in  ecclesiasti- 


1856.]  LETTER  FROM  BISHOP  OF  PETERBOROUGH.    201 

cal  processions — questions  which  I  confess  I  was  in- 
ch'ned  to  treat  with  somewhat  irreverent  impatience,  but 
which,  as  he  illustrated  them  by  precedents  from  Church 
history  and  principles  of  Church  law,  became,  if  not  im- 
portant, at  least  curiously  interesting  and  instructive.  Of 
his  scholarship,  as  distinguished  from  general  knowledge, 
I  cannot  pretend  to  speak.  It  was  so  far  beyond  mine  that 
it  would  be  absurd  in  me  to  attempt  to  estimate  it.  Nor 
was  there,  for  the  most  part,  in  our  practical  discussions  of 
diocesan  affairs,  much  occasion  for  its  display.  But  of  his 
really  vast  acquaintance  with  divinity  and  Church  history 
I  never  failed  to  receive  a  fresh  impression  on  every  occa- 
sion of  my  meeting  him  in  Conference. 

And  yet,  with  all  this  learning,  he  was  so  genuinely,  so 
unaffectedly  humble.  He  used  to  defer  to  the  opinions  of 
the  youngest  and  least  experienced  of  his  brethren  with  a 
sweet  old-world  courtesy  and  graciousness  that  could  only 
have  come  from  a  lowliness  of  heart  that  esteemed  others 
better  than  himself.  He  may  perhaps  have  possessed 
powers  of  sarcasm — he  certainly  was  by  no  means  wanting 
in  a  sense  of  humour — but  never  in  the  eighteen  years  of 
my  acquaintance  with  him  did  I  hear  from  him,  even  in 
the  keenest  debate,  a  sharp  or  scornful  word.  He  was 
uniformly  gentle,  conciliatory,  striving  always  for  the  things 
that  made  for  peace,  and  though  ready  if  need  be  to  die 
for  what  he  held  to  be  the  truth,  always  ready  to  admit 
that  others  might  see  truth  from  other  points  of  view  than 
his — always  willing  to  learn  as  he  certainly  was  apt  to  teach. 

But  unaffectedly  humble  as  he  was,  no  man  ever  had  a 
loftier  idea  than  he  had  of  the  dignity  of  his  office.  To  be 
a  bishop  in  the  Church  of  Christ,  and  above  all  a  bishop 
of  the  Anglican  branch  of  it,  was  manifestly  in  his  eyes 
the  highest  and  noblest  position  to  which  any  man  could 

*  The  Bishop  here  refers  to  the  Conferences  of  the  East 
Anglian  Bishops  held  annually  in  rotation  at  Norwich,  Lincoln, 
Ely^  Peterborough^  and  S.  Albans. 


202  CONVOCATION.  [1856. 

be  called.  He  magnified,  if  ever  any  one  did,  his  office, 
but  his  magnifying  of  it  was  of  the  kind  that  South 
describes  when  he  contrasts  those  who  think  so  highly  of 
the  Church  that  they  think  meanly  of  themselves,  with 
those  who  think  so  highly  of  themselves  that  they  think 
meanly  of  the  Church. 

But  above  all,  and  before  all  else,  your  father's  most 
distinguishing  characteristic  was  holiness.  No  one  could 
be  in  his  company,  even  for  a  few  moments,  without  feeling 
that  he  was  in  contact  with  one  who  lived  always  very 
near  to  God. 

I  used  to  say  of  him  that  it  was  a  lesson  in  prayer  to 
see  him  pray.  In  the  worship,  and  especially  in  the  Holy 
Communion,  with  which  our  Conference  used  to  commence 
the  look  of  deep,  fervent,  and  yet  happy  devotion  in  his 
face  was  a  thing  to  remember.  He  seemed  to  feel  a  solemn 
delight  in  speaking  to  God,  and  when  he  spoke  of  Divine 
things,  it  was  always  with  a  profound  and  unaffected 
mien,  and  yet  with  a  calm  assurance  of  faith  that  seemed 
to  bring  his  hearers  nearer  to  that  Divine  Presence  which 
he  so  evidently  and  so  entirely  realized  for  himself  as  he 
spoke. 

Truly  I  can  say  of  him — what  cannot  be  said  of  many 
men — that  I  never  conversed  with  him  on  sacred  subjects 
nor  worshipped  by  his  side,  without  feeling  myself  a  better 
man, 

"  Sit  anima  mea  cum  anima  ejus  "  was  once  said  by  an 
enemy  over  the  grave  of  a  good  bishop  whom,  in  many 
respects,  your  father  resembled.  No  fitter  words  could 
close  this  brief  and  imperfect  record  of  him  from  one  who 
cherishes  his  memory  as  his  friend  and  brother. 
Believe  me,  my  dear  Canon, 

Yours  most  truly, 

W.  C.  P. 


CHAPTER   VIII. 

THE  EPISCOPATE.— FIRST  THREE    YEARS. 

On  Tuesday,  October  27th,  1868,  the  venerable  and 
beloved  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  Dr.  Longley, 
was  called  to  his  rest.  His  decease  produced  (as 
might  have  been  expected)  some  important  changes 
in  the  Church.  The  foremost  ecclesiastic  of  his  day, 
Dr.  Samuel  Wilberforce,  to  whom  the  eyes  of  all  men 
naturally  were  directed  as  a  likely  successor  to  the 
archbishopric,  had  been  wounded  by  a  cruel  domestic 
stroke,  the  too-well-timed  secession  of  his  daughter 
and  son-in-law  to  the  Church  of  Rome,  which,  made 
public  as  it  was,  on  the  very  day,  almost  at  the  very 
hour,  of  the  news  of  Archbishop  Longley's  death, 
effectually  stood  in  the  way  of  the  Bishop's  advance- 
ment. Accordingly  Dr.  Tait  was  selected  for  the 
vacant  archiepiscopal  throne,  while  the  see  of  Lon- 
don was  offered  to  Dr.  Jackson;  and  on  the  13th 
of  November,  1868,  the  Prime  Minister,  Mr. 
D' Israeli,  wrote  to  Dr.  Wordsworth,  announcing 
his  intention  to  recommend  the  Queen  to  raise 
him  to  the  episcopal  bench  ;  "because,"  he  said,  "  I 
have  confidence  in  your  abilities,  your  learning, 
and  the  shining  example  which  you  have  set,  that 


201       THE  EPISCOPATE— FIRST  THREE  YEARS.  [1869  — 

a    true   Protestant    may  be  a   sound  Churchman." 
Dr.  Wordsworth's  first  impulse  was,  as  will  be  seen, 
to  decline  the  offer.     He  wrote  a  letter,  which  is  still 
extant,    "  craving    her    Majesty's  permission  to  be 
allowed  to  continue  his  endeavours  without  further 
advancement    to    serve    God    and  the    Queen  "   in 
the  position  which  he  then  held.     This  letter  was 
not  eventually  sent ;    but  one  can   well   understand 
that  the  meditated  refusal  would  not  be  in  his  case 
the   mere    conventional    "  nolo  episcopari."      As   a 
scholar  and  divine  he  had  an  established  reputation 
which   needed   not  to  be  enhanced  by  any  outward 
dignity  ;  he  had  arrived  at  a  time  of  life  when  men 
do  not  readily  adapt  themselves  to  new  surroundings 
and  new  duties  ;    his  relationships  both  with  West- 
minster and  Stanford  were  singularly  happy  ;  and  he 
had   abundant  leisure  for  his  favourite  studies.     But 
a    few   weeks  before    the    offer  was  made  him,  his 
Commentary  on  Isaiah  had  appeared  ;  650  copies  out 
of  1000  had  been  disposed  of  in  about  ten  days.   He 
had    been    also    occupied    with    the    publication    of 
"  Responsio  Anglicana,"  an  Anglican  answer  to  the 
recent  Papal  Encyclic,  copies  of  which  were  widely 
circulated  at  this  time.     As  a  preacher,  as  a  writer, 
as  a  public  speaker,  and  in  many  other  ways,  he  was 
becoming    daily    better    known,    and    more    highly 
valued.     Altogether  he  might  well  doubt  whether  it 
would  conduce  to  his  happiness  or  his  usefulness  if 
he  were  removed  to  a  post  in  which  he  would  have 
to  enter  upon  a  course  of  entirely  new  duties,  and  in 


—  1872.]  OFFER  OF  THE  BISHOPRIC.  205 

which  the  vast  amount  of  routine  work,  and  the 
incessant  worry  and  bustle  incident  to  a  modern 
bishop's  lot,  would  be  uncongenial  to  a  student's 
habits.  But  we  need  not  speculate  upon  his  feelings. 
Let  him  speak  for  himself : — 

"The  position,"  he  says,  '^  which  I  then  held  as  Canon  and 
Archdeacon  of  Westminster,  and  Vicar  of  Stanford-in-the- 
Vale,  and  Rural  Dean  in  the  Diocese  of  Oxford,  gave  ample 
opportunities  for  professional  labour  and  study,  and  was  all, 
and  more  than  all,  that  in  worldly  respects  I  could  reason- 
ably desire.  Besides,  being  more  than  threescore  years  of 
age,  I  shrank  from  the  labours  and  responsibilities  of  the 
Episcopate.  Some  relatives,  however,  and  friends  dissuaded 
me  from  sending  that  letter  of  refusal,  and  after  some  mis- 
givings I  yielded  to  their  urgency,  and  on  November  17th 
forwarded  another  letter  to  the  Prime  Minister,  expressive 
of  a  respectful  assent  to  that  honourable  proposal. 

It  happened,  perhaps  fortunately,  that  owing  to  the 
fact  of  Dr.  Wordsworth's  eldest  son  John  being  then 
a  master  at  Wellington  College,  the  Canon,  with 
some  members  of  his  family,  was  to  pay  a  visit  to 
Dr.  and  Mrs.  Benson  at  the  very  time  when  the 
reply  to  the  Prime  Minister's  offer  was  still  pending, 
and  their  influence,  no  less  than  that  of  the  Bishop  of 
S.  Andrew's  and  other  relatives,  was  exerted  to  over- 
come the  above-mentioned  misQrivinfrs.  This  occasion 
was  also  memorable  as  being  the  first  beginning  of 
anything  like  real  intimacy  between  the  Bishop  and 
one  who  was  afterwards  to  be  so  closely  associated 
with  him  in  personal  friendship  and  in  work  for  the 
Church  ;    and  it  was  not  a  little  remarkable  to  those 


2o6       THE  EPISCOPATE— FIRST  THREE  YEARS.  [1869— 

who  were  present  at  the  time  how  eagerly  at  such  a 
critical  moment  in  his  own  Hfe  Dr.  Wordsworth 
threw  himself  into  the  discussion  of  other  questions 
which  were  raised  in  conversation,  notably  the  history 
of  S.  Cyprian,  and  its  applicability  to  modern  diffi- 
culties, especially  those  at  Cape  Town,  &c.  At  the 
time  when  the  Prime  Minister's  offer  first  arrived,  it 
was  imagined  that  Ely  was  the  vacant  see.  Its 
attractions  were  obviously  strong  to  one  so  connected 
with  the  University  of  Cambridge.  Dr.  Wordsworth, 
however,  wrote  to  Mr.  D'Israeli  his  acceptance  of 
a7ty  post  to  which  her  Majesty  should  be  pleased  to 
call  him.  Eventually  Lincoln,  and  not  Ely,  proved  to 
be  the  offered  Bishopric.  Lincoln  had  been  up  to 
this  moment  almost  a  teri'a  incognita  to  the  new 
Bishop  and  his  family.  The  occasional  visits  of 
Chancellor  Massingberd,  who  represented  the  Chapter 
in  Convocation,  and  the  photograph  of  Southwell 
Minster  which  had  long  been  familiar  to  Dr.  Words- 
worth as  a  member  of  the  Cathedral  Commission, 
may  be  said  to  have  been  almost  his  only  links  with 
his  new  diocese.  A  study  of  Camden's  "  Britannia," 
which  characteristically  enough  was  the  first  book 
which  presented  itself  on  the  subject,  represented  the 
natives  of  Lincolnshire  as  obliged  to  walk  about  on 
stilts,  while  the  Rev.  T.  Mozley  (a  native  of  Gains- 
borough) sent  a  sketch  of  the  Lincolnshire  landscape, 
which  consisted  merely  of  a  horizontal  line,  with  the 
motto,  "  nil  nisi  pontus  et  acr."  Undiscouraged  by 
these  representations,  however,  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Words- 


—1872.]  ACCEPTANCE  OF  BISHOPRIC.  207 

worth  paid  a  visit  to  Riseholme,  where  they  were 
most  kindly  welcomed  by  Bishop  and  Mrs.  Jackson, 
and  whence  they  returned  with  most  favourable  im- 
pressions of  city,  cathedral,  and  diocese.  It  added 
not  a  little  to  Dr.  Wordsworth's  gratification  to  find 
that  Tuesday,  November  17th,  the  day  on  which  he 
accepted  Lincoln,  was  a  marked  day  in  the  annals  of 
the  diocese.  As  was  his  usual  habit  at  Westminster, 
he  had  attended  the  Abbey  service,  and  was  struck 
by  the  anthem  beginning,  "  This  is  the  day  which  the 
Lord  hath  made."  On  inquiring  the  reason  for  its 
selection,  he  was  told  that  it  was  the  anniversary 
of  the  accession  of  Queen  Elizabeth  (the  second 
foundress,  so  to  speak,  of  Westminster),  and  also 
the  day  of  S.  Hugh  of  Lincoln.  He  often  in  later 
life  used  to  refer  with  pleasure  to  this  coincidence. 
The  following  letter  bears  upon  this  point : — 

Deanery^  Westminster. 
My    dear    Bishop, — I    have   only    just   received   (re- 
covered ?)   my  reference  that  I  promised  to  send  to  you,  as 
to  the  connection  of  the  Bishops  of  Lincoln  with  West- 
minster. 

St.  Hugh  was  consecrated  in  the  Chapel  of  St.  Catharine, 
therefore  in  your  house,  1 186.  William  de  Blois  (1203)  is  the 
only  Bishop  of  which  there  is  certain  proof  that  he  was 
consecrated  before  the  High  Altar  of  the  Abbey,  where  you 
yourself  were  consecrated.  We  shall  think  of  you  again  on 
the  29th,  when  three  Bishops  are  to  be  consecrated  with  us. 

Yours  sincerely, 

A.  P.  Stanley. 
June  21  st,  1869. 


2o8       THE  EPISCOPATE— FIRST  THREE  YEARS.  [1869— 

Meanwhile  he  occupied  himself  busily  in  winding  up 
his  affairs  at  Stanford  and  in  the  preparations  for  his 
new  life.  As  usual  his  first  act  was  io  pray.  On  the 
news  of  his  being  definitely  appointed  Bishop  of 
Lincoln,  which  came  on  a  Sunday,  he  gathered  his 
family  about  him,  as  was  his  wont,  to  pray  for 
"  Southwell  Minster  and  Palace,  in  City  of  Lincoln, 
Canon  of  Westminster,  and  Vicar  here." 

On  January  ist  one  of  his  daughters  says, — 

"  I  went  with  my  father,  he  to  administer  Communion  to 
two  old  men,  afterwards  a  long  walk  with  him  on  the 
Faringdon  Road.  Prospects  of  diocese.  "  Pro\/idence  that 
has  been  with  me  all  my  life  ;  Abraham's  example,  as  on 
this  day  ;  Subdivision  of  diocese,  and  other  plans." 

It  was  in  this  same  spirit  that  he  took  to  himself, 
in  his  sermon  on  his  last  Sunday  at  Stanford,  the 
beautiful  words  of  Ps.  Ixxi. — the  Psalm  of  David's 
old  age  :  "I  will  go  forth  in  the  strength  of  the 
Lord  God."  Just  before  the  close  of  Dr.  Words- 
worth's ministry  at  Stanford  the  Bishop  of  Oxford 
came  for  a  Confirmation  in  the  parish  church,  which 
was  most  satisfactorily  attended  ;  and  happily,  as  was 
his  wont,  reminded  his  young  hearers  of  king  Joash, 
"  who  did  right  in  the  eyes  of  the  Lord  all  the  days 
wherein  Jehoiada  the  priest  instructed  him  "  (2  Kings 
xii.  2),  but  who  offended  afterwards  (2  Chron.  xxiv. 
17),  and  warned  them  against  a  similar  falling  away^ 
The  parting  from  Stanford  was  very  sad,  no  least 
on  account  of  the  ill-health  of  Miss  Frere,  who  has 


Lcndon.   Rivinptons, 
188S.      ^ 


—  1872.]  FAREWELL  TO  STANFORD.  209 

been  already  mentioned,  and  who  then  seemed 
almost  in  a  dying  state.  She  rallied  for  a  time,  and 
lingered  some  years  after  this,  but  was  never  well 
enough  to  come  to  Lincoln.  The  middle  classes,  and 
especially  the  farmers,  no  less  than  the  poor,  deeply 
regretted  the  parting  with  the  Vicar  who  had  so 
completely  won  them.  Among  the  kind  gifts  he 
received  at  this  time  were  a  silver  mace  and  a  signet 
ring  ;  the  latter  he  constantly  wore.  At  Wellington 
College  he  had  been  much  pleased  by  a  prie-dieu 
belonging  to  Dr.  Benson,  and  had  asked  for  a  pattern 
of  it.  This  w^as  copied  by  the  village  carpenter  (the 
son  of  a  dissenting  preacher),  who  refused  to  take 
any  payment  for  it,  but  "  begged  to  be  remembered  in 
his  daily  orisons."  It  was  constantly  used  by  the 
Bishop. 

Another  incident  of  this  time  was  the  admission  to 
priest's  orders  of  his  son  John  at  Maidenhead — only 
three  days  before  his  father's  consecration. 

Meanwhile  the  usual  formalities  had  been  pro- 
ceeding. 

"  On  November  22nd,"  says  the  Bishop,  "  I  received 
the  intelligence  that  her  Majesty  had  been  graciously 
pleased  to  approve  my  nomination  to  the  See  of  Lin- 
coln, to  which  I  was  elected  by  the  Dean  and  Chapter 
of  the  Cathedral  Church  of  Lincoln  on  February  12th 
(at  Lincoln  all  the  prebendaries  or  non-residentiary  canons 
— more  than  fifty  in  number — have  votes),  and  was 
confirmed  by  the  Metropolitan  of  the  Province  on 
February  22nd,  and  consecrated  by  the  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury  and  nine  of  his  suffragans  (London,  Llandaff, 

P 


2IO      THE  EPISCOPATE— FIRST  THREE  YEARS.  [1869— 

Oxford,  Bangor,  Gloucester  and  Bristol,  Ely,  Rochester, 
Lichfield,  Peterborough),  my  brother,  the  Bishop  of  S. 
Andrew's,  and  the  Bishop  of  Labuan  and  Bishop  Ryan,  in 
Westminster  Abbey,  on  February  24,  S.  Matthias'  Day, 
1869,  when  the  sermon  was  preached  by  the  Prolocutor 
of  the  Lower  House  of  Convocation,  Dr.  Bickersteth." 

It  will  be  observed  that  Dr.  Wordsworth  is  as 
careful  to  notice  the  details  of  the  election,  the  con- 
firmation, and  the  consecration,  as  those  of  the 
nomination.  All  these  were  to  him  no  mere  forms 
to  be  gone  through  as  a  matter  of  course,  but  of  the 
essence  of  the  appointment.  He  had  a  deep  respect 
for  the  "  Regale,"  but  at  least  as  deep  a  one  for  the 
"  Pontificate."  The  day  of  his  consecration,  S. 
Matthias'  Day,  he  always  kept  with  great  solemnity, 
making  a  point  of  attending  the  services  and  cele- 
brating the  Holy  Communion  in  his  own  cathedral  ; 
and,  in  later  years,  after  the  establishment  of  the 
"  Cancellarii  Scholae,"  holding  on  that  day  the 
yearly  festival  of  the  college. 

A  few  extracts  from  his  daughter's  journal  may 
perhaps  be  admitted  here. 

Wednesday. — Left  Stanford.  In  evening  dined  at  John's 
rooms  in  B.N.C.  Father,  mother,  M.,  Mr.  Burgon,  Con- 
ington,  and  Talbot.  Mr.  Conington  told  me  a  good  deal 
about  Lincolnshire.  His  mother  is  blind,  and  at  times 
has  fits  of  deafness  as  well.     He  seems  devoted  to  her.^ 

'  "  Miscellanies,"  i.  310,  311. 

2  Professor  Conington  was  one  of  our  first  visitors  at  Rise- 
holme  in  the  following  summer.  It  seems  impossible  not  to 
dwell  for  a  moment  on  the  name  of  one  whose  simplicity  and 
kindness  of  heart  were  as  remarkable  as  his  marvellous  memory 


— 1872.]  JOURNAL.  211 

The  following  Sunday  was  that  of  the  Ordination 
already  referred  to  at  Maidenhead. 

Another  name  which  it  is  impossible  to  omit,  as 
connected  with  this  time  at  Oxford,  is  that  of  the 
Rev.  H.  O.  Coxe,  Bodley's  Librarian,  whose  hos- 
pitality and  that  of  his  family  form  some  of  our 
brightest  recollections.^ 

Tuesday,  February  23/7/. — To  early  morning  service. 
A  kind  greeting  from  Lord  Hatherley  at  the  East 
Cloister  door  after  church.  He  followed  my  father  to 
talk  about  Westminster  Spiritual  Aid  Fund.  Church 
in  afternoon.  Father  made  short  farewell  address  to 
choristers  by  Newton's  grave  after  service.  He  was  also 
at  early  service  on  Wednesday  morning,  and  as  Dr.  Scott 
said  in  the  evening,  almost  with  tears  in  his  eyes,  "  He 
spoilt  my  sermon." 

and  his  extraordinarily  accurate  and  widely  extended  scholarship, 
and  his  delightful  flow  of  talk  on  any  subject  that  interested  him. 
He  was  one  of  those  typical  scholars  of  which  each  generation 
sees  fewer  than  the  last,  and  there  was  an  almost  pathetic  un- 
worldliness  about  his  whole  nature  which  gave  him  a  special  place 
in  the  affection  of  his  pupils  and  friends. 

^  The  Rev.  H.  O.  Coxe,  Bodley's  Librarian,  whose  daughter 
afterwards  married  the  bishop's  eldest  son.  Of  one  so  widely 
known  and  universally  beloved,  it  will  be  perhaps  sufficient  to 
say  that  not  only  was  he  an  acute  observer  of  men  and  things,  no 
less  than  books,  but  that  the  charm  of  his  high-bred  courtesy, 
due  as  it  was  to  fundamental  kindness  of  heart,  and  the  play 
of  his  almost  unrivalled  humour,  governed  as  it  was  by  a  fine 
taste  and  keen  artistic  sense,  made  him  alike  welcome  among 
scholars,  country  gentlemen,  men  of  the  world,  and  indeed  all 
classes,  down  to  the  very  poorest.  He  had  an  almost  Shak- 
sperian  range  of  sympathy  and  a  racy  originality  and  power  of 
mimicry  and'  story-telling  which,  fascinating  as  it  was,  never 
seemed  out  of  keeping  with  his  deeply  religious  tone  of  mind  and 
unusual  goodness  and  purity  of  heart. 

r    2 


212       THE  EPISCOPATE— FIRST  THREE  YEARS.  [1869— 

Wednesday. — S.  Matthias.  Went  early  to  Abbey,  with 
Mrs.  Bickersteth.  West  Cloister  door  crowded.  Many 
friends  and  acquaintances,  among  them  M.  and  Madame 
Goldschmidt  (Jenny  Lind),who  spoke  to  me  in  cloisters. 
She,  in  her  fur  tippet  and  brown  veil,  very  earnest  and 
naive-looking,  seemed  much  interested.  We  got  tolerable 
places  on  the  south  side  of  the  lantern.  Enormous  crowd 
of  friends  and  strangers.  Convocation  in  the  sacrarium  ; 
impossible  to  see  anything  of  the  service,  except  heads  of 
consecrating  bishops.  Only  saw  the  faces  of  bishops  elect 
as  they  passed  to  and  fro,  but  this  was  enough.  Good  ser- 
mon by  Prolocutor.  "  Hark,  the  sound  of  holy  voices," 
not  very  effectively  sung.  Most  beautiful  "  Veni  Creator" 
(Attwood's),  soft,  clear  treble  voice  seeming  to  melt  into 
one's  very  heart.  Communion  Service;  innumerable  friends. 
My  father  and  Uncle  Charles  together  where  we  were.  It 
was  altogether  an  unforgettable  service.  Many  friends 
afterwards:  Bishops  of  Oxford,  London,  Lichfield  (Selwyn), 
and  the  Archbishop  (Tait).  In  afternoon,  Lady  Augusta 
Stanley,  most  warm  and  kind.  Dined  in  evening  at  Deanery; 
Archbishop  of  Armagh,  Bishop  of  Ely,  Mrs.  Browne,  Mr- 
and  Mrs.  T.  Hughes,  Miss  Stanley,  Sir  C.  and  Lady  Tre- 
velyan,  the  Prolocutor,  Dr.  W.  Smith,  of  the  Quarterly^  and 
Archdeacon  Moore.  Talk  about  Irish  Church.  "  What  a 
pity,"  says  Dr.  Smith,  glancing  at  the  Primate's  aristocratic 
figure  and  blue  ribbon,  "  that  all  tJiat  is  to  be  swept  away  ! ' 

Thursday,  2^tJi. — P"athcr  off  early  to  do  homage  at 
Osborne. 

Friday,  26th. — He  took  his  scat  -in  Upper  House  of 
Convocation.  Subdivision  of  dioceses;  a  good  omen,  I 
hope.  Walked  with  father  in  College  Garden  in  after- 
noon ;  interrupted.  Looked  over  book-cases  with  him 
after  dinner  ;  a  melancholy  task, 

I  forgot  to  say  the  Dean  and  Lady  Augusta  had  called  late 
the  evening  before,  and  been  so  pleasant.      My  father  gave 

*  The  following   is  from  a  contemporary    newsjjapcr  ; — "  The 


—1872.]  JOURNAL.  213 

the  Dean  his  old  maps  of  London  and  Rome.  Standing 
on  the  landing  opposite  where  the  former  hung  over  dress- 
ing-room door,  the  Dean  observed  "  that  a  map  of  the 
ancient  Augusta  was  very  a  propos"  "Yes,"  my  father  said, 
"Augusta  ever  young.'^  He  also  gave  him  a  "Life  of 
Heylin,"  oddly  enough,  by  Barnard,  Rector  of  Waddington, 
near  Lincoln.  There  was  a  scene  described  between  the 
Bishop  of  Lincoln  and  Sub-Dean  of  Westminster.  Absit 
omen  !     A  very  cordial  and  affectionate  parting. 


Dean  of  Westminst-er,  in  a  most  interesting  sermon  at  West- 
minster Abbey  on  Sunday  afternoon,  paid  a  very  graceful  tribute 
to  the  memory  of  the  present  Bishop  of  Lincoln.  Speaking  of  the 
power  of  Christian  poetry,  and  showing  how  all  schools  of  thought 
are  bridged  over,  how  controversy  is  lost  in  the  use  of  hymns,  he 
quoted,  by  way  of  illustration,  from  Bishop  Ken,  J.  Keble,  the 
author  of  the  '  Christian  Year,'  '  Toplady,  a  Calvinist,'  and 
*  Doddridge,  a  Dissenter,'  the  author  of  the  Sacramental  hymn  in 
our  Prayer-book.  '  Or,'  said  the  Dean,  '  to  take  another  illus- 
tration from  the  imposing  ceremony  which  took  place  in  this 
Abbey  on  the  previous  Wednesday.  When  the  ten  prelates  were 
standing  round  the  three  pastors,  who  were  then  bent  on  their 
mission,  there  was  sung  the  well-known  hymn,  "  Veni  Creator," 
as  old  as  the  days,  if  not  from  the  pen  of  Charlemagne.  There 
had  previously  been  sung  in  that  service  a  hymn  composed  by 
one  of  those  three  pastors — "  Hark,  the  sound  of  holy  voices." 
When  that  hymn  was  last  sung  in  these  walls,  there  was  present 
an  eminent  Nonconformist  minister,  and  so  pleased  was  he 
with  it,  that  he  has  since  frequently  ordered  it  to  be  sung  in 
his  own  chapel.  The  author  of  that  hymn  has  now  left  us  for  a 
wider  field  of  usefulness  ;  but  during  the  twenty-four  years  with 
which  he  was  connected  with  this  place  he  had  endeared  himself, 
by  his  fine  Christian  gift,  to  all.  We  shall  often  be  reminded  of 
him,  by  the  use  of  his  favourite  hymn,  but  still  more  closely,  by 
his  holy  life  and  the  many  good  works  which  he  has  left  us  all  to 
imitate.'  The  Bishop  of  Lincoln  confirmed  and  preached  last 
Sunday  at  Brigg,  and  held  a  second  Confirmation  on  Monday 
morning  for  candidates  from  surrounding  parishes." 


214        THE  EPISCOPATE— FIRST  THREE  YEARS.  [iS6g— 

Arrived  in  Lincoln  just  in  time  to  see  the  Minster  in  its 
mellow  afternoon  beauty.  Drove  up  hill.  Pleased  with 
all  we  saw. 

We  have  hitherto  been  regarding  the  new  Bishop's 
appointment  chiefly  from  his  own  point  of  view,  and 
that  of  his  family  and  friends.  We  must  now 
consider  it  from  the  point  of  view  of  the  Diocese. 

It  is  not  surprising  that  the  news  of  Dr.  Words- 
worth's elevation  should  have  been  received  with 
mingled  feelings.  It  was  hailed  with  delight  by 
some  who  felt  that  the  learning  and  piety  which  the 
new  Bishop  was  confessed  by  all  to  possess  would 
confer  honour  upon  the  bench,  and  who  saw  in  the 
strict,  uncompromising  churchmanship  of  his  prin- 
ciples a  great  accession  to  the  strength  of  the  English 
Church.  On  the  other  hand  many  regarded  the 
appointment  with  misgivings.  It  was  not  generally 
known  that  he  had  had  so  large  an  experience  of 
parish  work  ;  what  7uas  generally  known  of  him 
would  seem  to  fill  some  minds  with  apprehension. 
Was  a  man  of  letters  quite  the  sort  of  man  to  enter 
with  zest  into  the  many  and  strangely  heterogeneous 
duties  which  are  supposed  to  appertain  to  the  episcopal 
office  in  modern  days  ?  W^as  he  likely  to  be  a  good 
man  of  lousiness  ?  Would  he  bring  his  mind  down 
to  the  little  details,  many  of  which  are  apparently 
trifling,  but  which  nevertheless  must  be  attended  to 
by  a  Bishop  himself,  and  cannot  be  safely  delegated 
to  a  deputy  ?  Were  these  the  times  for  a  bishop  to 
spend    his    days    in    dignified    seclusion    among   his 


— 1872.]      QUALIFICATIONS  FOR  A  BISHOPRIC.  215 

books,  and  only  emerge  from  his  study  on  rare 
occasions  ?  Were  not  his  opinions  and  character 
generally  too  old-fashioned  to  be  in  sympathy  with 
the  exigencies  of  modern  life  ?  Such  questions  were 
often,  in  effect,  asked,  and  were  very  soon  answered 
by  the  Bishop's  own  conduct. 

In  point  of  fact  Dr.  Wordsworth  was  singularly 
well  qualified  by  his  antecedents  for  the  many-sided 
work  which  he  now  undertook.  As  Canon  of  West- 
minster he  had  a  thorough  insight  into  the  cathedral 
system.  From  his  connection  with  the  Westminster 
Spiritual  Aid  Fund,  and  like  organizations  in  that 
poor  and  populous  district,  he  had  some  practical 
notion  of  what  a  town  clergyman's  work  was  ;  as 
Vicar  of  Stanford  he  had  the  most  minute  knowledge 
of  the  management  of  a  rural  parish  ;  as  Rural  Dean 
he  had  much  experience  in  the  art  of  directing  a 
body  of  clergy  ;  as  a  constant  preacher  and  speaker 
he  was  thoroughly  au  fait  in  two  most  important 
parts  of  a  bishop's  work  ;  as  Fellow  and  Assistant 
Tutor  of  Trinity  and  Master  of  Harrow  he  had 
learnt  what  the  young  mind  was,  no  slight  advan- 
tage to  one,  an  essential  part  of  whose  duty  was  to 
deliver  confirmation  addresses.  His  intellectual  talents 
and  acquirements,  instead  of  disqualifying  him,  were 
really,  next  to  his  personal  piety,  his  very  best  quali- 
fications for  the  episcopal  office.  In  the  first  place 
his  profound  theological  learning  enabled  him  to 
speak  with  an  authority  which,  even  on  purely  intel- 
lectual grounds,  quite  apart  from  his  high  position, 


2i6      THE  EPISCOPATE— FIRST  THREE  YEARS.   [1869— 

few  would  have  the  hardihood  to  dispute ;  the 
poetical  and  imaginative  element  which  was  so 
strongly  developed  in  him  found  a  scope  for  its 
exercise,  which,  from  the  nature  of  the  case,  it  could 
not  have  in  a  lower  sphere  ;  his  knowledge  of  history, 
especially  Church  history,  enabled  him  to  appreciate 
to  the  full  all  those  associations  with  the  past  in 
which  the  cathedral  of  Lincoln,  and  the  city  of 
Lincoln,  and  the  whole  counties  of  Lincoln  and  Not- 
tingham are  peculiarly  rich.  And,  finally,  the  varied 
and  extensive  range  of  his  acquirements,  combined 
with  a  singularly  generous  character,  had  given  him 
a  certain  grand  way  of  looking  at  things,  a  habit  of 
lifting  them  up,  as  it  were,  to  a  height  above  all 
sordid  associations,  of  dwelling  upon  their  nobler 
aspects,  which  it  is  not  easy  to  define  or  illustrate. 
This  characteristic  was  all  the  more  striking  because 
it  was  combined  with  great  simplicity  in  his  personal 
habits. 

To  quote  his  own  favourite  poet,  we  felt  in  his 
presence 

Largior  hie  campos  aether  et  luminc  vcstit 
Purpurco. 

In  an  admirable  sketch  of  Bishop  Wordsworth's 
episcopate,  which  appeared  immediately  after  his 
death,  but  which  seems  from  internal  evidence 
to  have  been  written  before  that  event  (on  the 
occasion  of  the  resignation  of  his  See),  the  general 
estimate  of  his  course  of  action  has  been   so  happily 


—1 872.]  CHURCH  QUARTERLY  ON  BP.  WORDSWORTH.  217 

given   that  we  cannot  do  better  than  quote  a  para- 
graph : — 

It  is  in  no  spirit  of  disparagement  of  great  services  already 
rendered  in  the  diocese  that  we  venture  to  pronounce  Bishop 
Wordsworth's  tenure  of  his  office  an  epoch-making  event 
in  the  history  of  the  Church  of  England.  .  .  .  We  do  not 
say  that  all  his  plans  have  been  as  yet  fully  carried  out,  or 
that,  in  every  respect,  entire  success  was  granted.  But  the 
sixty-first  Bishop  of  Lincoln  has  restored  an  ideal  of  the 
episcopal  office  which,  we  feel  sure,  cannot  again  disappear, 
and  the  confidence  with  which  prolonged  experience  and 
matured  learning  surrounded  him,  enabled  him  from  the 
first  to  move  without  hesitation  to  the  ends  in  view,  and 
won  for  him  the  grateful  respect  ever  accorded  to  rulers, 
whether  in  Church  or  State,  who,  on  well-considered  grounds 
and  with  kindliness  to  those  who  differ  from  them,  possess 
the  increasingly  rare  gift  of  making  up  their  minds,  and, 
while  giving  all  legitimate  opinions  fair  play,  taking  with 
dignity  and  power  a  distinct  line  of  their  own.  That  line 
has  been  simply  an  adaptation  of  Anglo-Catholic  principles 
to  the  needs  of  the  age  in  which  he  has  exercised  the  func- 
tions of  the  Episcopate.  For  the  true  principles  of  the 
Church  of  England,  the  principles  of  Evangelical  doctrine, 
of  Apostolical  order^  and  of  Catholic  love,^  the  bishop  has 
seen  no  reason  to  apologize,  but  with  tenacious  grasp  of 
first  principles  he  has  combined  true  breadth  of  view  for 
present  needs.^ 

What  follows  will  be  to  a  great  extent  simply  an 
illustration  in  detail  of  this  sketch. 

Immediately  after  his  consecration  the  Bishop  set 

*  Bishop  Wordsworth  "  On  the  Controversy  with  Rome,"  p.  8. 
6  Church  Quarterly  Review  for  April,  1885,  Art.  viii.  ("Bishop 
Wordsworth's  Episcopate,"  by  Canon  Worlledge),  p.  175. 


2i8       THE  EPISCOPATE— FIRST  THREE  YEARS.   [1869— 

forth  on  his  first  Confirmation  tour,  and  on  the  9th 
of  March,  1S69,  we  find  him  writing  from  Bigby, 
near  Brigg,  to  his  daughter  Priscilla : — 

We  are  now  advanced  about  one  third  of  our  way  in 
confirmation  tour  before  Easter,  and  hope  that,  God  willing, 
we  shall  be  allowed  to  join  your  dear  sisters  this  day  fort- 
night at  Riseholme,  and  that  we  shall  also  then  see  you. 
Hitherto  He  has  mercifully  helped  us,  and  we  have  great 
reason  to  bless  Him  for  the  strength  and  support  He  has 
given  us,  and  for  the  great  kindness,  indeed  the  love,  with 
which  we  have  been  everywhere  received  hitherto.  Your 
dear  mother  is  more  to  me  than  I  can  express  in  this  new 
life,  and  she  does  not  seem  to  be  the  worse  for  it. 

If  matters  assumed  a  roseate  hue  from  the  bishop's 
point  of  view  they  certainly  did  the  same  from  that 
of  the  clergy.  The  geniality,  the  earnestness,  and 
above  all,  perhaps,  the  thorough  outspokenness  of 
their  new  chief,  attracted  them  greatly.  Dr.  Words- 
worth had  the  very  rare  gift  of  being  a  good  talker, 
and  at  his  first  introduction  to  his  clergy  he  exerted 
his  conversational  powers  to  the  utmost.  One  of 
his  first  interviews  with  some  country  clergy  after  a 
village  confirmation  may  be  touched  upon.  He  had 
evidently  been  posted  up  by  his  host  in  the  names 
and  antecedents  of  all  the  clergy  he  was  to  meet, 
and  when  he  was  introduced  to  each  he  made  a  little 
remark,  showing:  that  he  knew  somethinq:  about  him, 
and  at  the  same  time  indicating  his  own  predilec- 
tions. For  example  :  "  This,  my  lord,  is  Mr.  Wat- 
son." '*  Mr.  Watson,  are  you  connected  with  that 
excellent  man   Joshua  Watson,  who  was  one  of  the 


— 1872.]       SPEECH  AT  S.  S WITHIN' S,  LINCOLN.  219 

most  faithful  laymen  of  our  Church  ?  "      "  This,  my 

lord,  is  Mr. ."     "  Mr. ,  I   hear  you  belong 

to  Lincoln  College  ;  you  are,  no  doubt,  acquainted 
with  the  learned  and  admirable  Dr.  Kay  ? "  and  so 
on. 

No  one,  of  course,  could  fail  to  observe  how  help- 
ful Mrs.  Wordsworth  was  to  her  husband  in  his  new 
sphere  ;  but  she  was  so  quiet  and  unassuming  that 
her  personality  seemed  to  be  almost  merged  in  his. 

Dr.  Wordsworth  soon  showed  that  he  was  master 
of  an  art  in  which  a  bishop,  of  all  men,  should  not 
be  deficient,  that  of  public  speaking.  On  Easter 
Monday,  1869,  he  laid  the  foundation-stone  of  the 
new  church  of  S.  Swithin's,  Lincoln,  and  his  speech 
on  the  occasion  surprised  no  less  than  it  delighted 
his  hearers. 

The  following  extract  from  a  letter  written  by  one 
of  his  daughters  at  the  time,  will  give  some  idea  of 
the  speech  :  — 

The  Bishop  laid  the  stone  with  the  usual  ceremonies,  a 
high  wind  blowing  all  the  time.  In  the  course  of  the  pro- 
ceedings the  door  of  the  yard  opened,  and  a  crowd  of 
foundry  people  poured  in.  The  Bishop,  mounted  on  a 
chair  and  holding  on  to  one  of  the  ropes  by  which  the 
stone  had  been  lowered,  gave  them  an  address,  to  which 
they  listened  with  surprising  attention,  considering  the 
circumstances.  He  spoke  of  S.  Swithin  having  been  the 
tutor  of  King  Alfred,  and  of  the  interest  and  gratitude  we 
should  feel  in  and  towards  the  past.  Then,  alluding  to  the 
place  having  been  a  "sheep-market,"  he  reminded  them 
how  our  churches  ought  to  be  Bethesdas — sources  of 
strength  and  healing.     He  told  them   of  the  impression 


220       THE  EPISCOPATE— FIRST  THREE  YEARS.  [1869— 

made  on  him  by  the  growing  commercial  importance  of 
this  part  of  England — the  wonderful  new  docks  and  ware- 
houses of  Great  Grimsby,  which  has  developed  from  a 
mere  fishing-village  to  a  large  seaport  town  in  the  last  few 
years  ;  the  iron  trade,  in  which  those  now  around  him 
were  employed,  spreading  all  over  Northern  Europe,  and 
supplying  Norway,  Hamburg,  S.  Petersburg,  &c.,  from  the 
foundries  of  Lincoln.  But,  if  they  wished  for  prosperity  in 
trade,  for  confidence  betwixt  master  and  man,  for  the  suc- 
cess of  England's  manufactures  and  commerce,  they  must 
do  as  they  were  doing  that  day — begin  with  God,  who 
alone  makes  men  to  be  of  one  mind  in  a  house.  Corinth 
was  the  great  brass-foundry  of  the  ancient  world,  and  there 
S.  Paul  lived  and  worked.  He  rejoiced  that  this,  his  first 
appearance  before  them  as  their  bishop,  should  be  on  such 
an  occasion  a  happy  omen  for  the  day  of  his  marriage 
with  his  diocese. 

"We  knew,"  said  a  layman,  in  a  speech  after 
the  luncheon  which  followed,  "that  we  had  got 
for  our  new  bishop  a  man  of  learning,  but  we  did 
not  know  that  we  had  got  an  orator."  The  tone  of 
the  speech  showed  that  this  was  no  mere  conven- 
tional compliment,  but  that  it  expressed  the  real 
astonishment  and  admiration  which  he  had  felt  as 
he  listened  to  the  Bishop's  eloquent  address. 

The  Bishop  also  speedily  showed  that  his  elevation 
would  not  prevent  him  from  uttering  freely  his  senti- 
ments. On  the  13th  of  November,  1869,  he  wrote  to 
Dr.  Temple,  who  had  been  nominated  to  the  See  of 
Exeter,  begging  him  to  "disclaim  responsibility  for 
the  '  Essays  and  Reviews,'  in  which  a  production 
of  your    own    holds    the    first    place."      A    not    un- 


— 1872.]  DR.  TEMPLE'S  APPOINTMENT  TO  EXETER.  221 

friendly  correspondence  ensued,  in  which  Bishop 
Wordsworth  resolutely  maintained  his  own  views  in 
spite  of  the  almost  universal  condemnation  of  the 
secular  press.  The  whole  matter  need  not  here 
be  gone  into.  It  is  only  touched  upon  as  an 
instance  of  the  Bishop's  fearlessness  in  doing  what 
he  thought  to  be  right ;  and  it  may  be  added  that 
those  who  disagreed  with  him  most  did  justice  to 
the  purity  of  his  motives.  It  is  pleasing  to  note 
that  sixteen  years  later  Dr.  Temple,  in  a  graceful 
eulogy  upon  Dr.  Wordsworth,  touched  feelingly 
upon  this  very  controversy  : — 

"  He  set,'*  said  the  then  Bishop  of  London  in  Convoca- 
tion, just  after  Bishop  Wordsworth's  death,  "an  example  of 
dealing  with  religious  questions  in  such  a  way  as  to  impress 
us  at  once  with  the  gentleness  and  firmness  of  his  character 
and  the  saintliness  of  his  life.  There  is  hardly  any  utter- 
ance of  his  which  those  who  differed  from  him  most  em- 
phatically did  not  at  the  same  time  feel  to  be  the  utterance 
of  a  singularly  true  and  devout  Christian.  I  suppose 
there  are  several  of  us  who  have  great  reason  to  look  back 
on  kindnesses  received  from  him.  I  can  myself  speak  of 
unvarying  kindness  from  the  time  when  he  wrote  to  me  on 
my  nomination  to  the  bishopric  of  Exeter,  and  when,  soon 
afterwards,  he  was  so  good  as  to  allow  me  to  make  use  of 
his  examining  chaplain,  as  I  was  not  able  in  the  circum- 
stances to  get  the  use  of  my  own.  From  that  time  I  had 
much  communication  with  him  on  various  occasions,  when  his 
conduct  was  always  characterized  by  the  same  wonderful 
gentleness  and  sweetness.  But  I  think  that  his  sweetness 
of  character  was  even  more  conspicuous  when  there  was 
anything  like  a  strong  difference  of  opinion.  For  he  entered 
into  controversy  freely  and  boldly  but  he  never  concealed 


222      THE  EPISCOPATE— FIRST  THREE  YEARS.  [1869— 

the  warmth  of  his  affection  for  those  with  whom  he  was 
brought  into  contact,  even  though  he  might  have  had 
reason  to  contend  earnestly  with  them  on  points  which  he 
thought  of  importance,  but  in  which  they  considered  he 
was  mistaken.  Such  a  man  leaves  behind  him  a  treasure 
for  all  time." 

Bishop  Wordsv^^orth,  acting'  as  he  always  did  on 
the  principle  of  taking  his  clergy  into  his  confidence 
as  far  as  possible,  wrote  a  letter  to  an  archdeacon 
of  his  diocese  containing  his  appeal  to  Dr.  Temple 
and  Dr.  Temple's  reply,  giving,  in  conclusion,  what 
may  be  called  the  key-note  of  his  whole  epis- 
copate : — 

I  have  done,  my  dear  archdeacon,  what  seemed  to  be  my 
duty  to  do,  and  the  clergy  and  laity  of  this  diocese  have  a 
right  to  know  the  result.  I  should  be  thankful  for  your 
and  their  counsel  and  prayers,  and  I  am  persuaded  you  will 
agree  with  me  in  this,  that  the  cause  of  Christian  truth  is 
best  maintained  and  promoted  by  a  spirit  of  Christian 
courage,  animated  with  Christian  love. 

It  is  only  due  to  both  parties  to  say  that,  whatever 
differences  there  may  have  been  at  the  time  of  the 
appointment,  the  friendliness  of  personal  relations 
was  never  interrupted  ;  and  as  years  went  on  the 
esteem  on  the  part  of  Bishop  Wordsworth  for  his 
brother  bishop  steadily  increased  (he  used  often  to 
express  the  pleasure  he  felt  in  sitting  next  him  in 
Convocation),  and  one  of  his  last  acts  was,  after  his 
own  illness  and  resignation,  to  write  him  a  warm 
letter  of  congratulation  on  his  acceptance  of  the  See 
of  London. 


—1 872.]  SUFFRAGAN  BISHOPS.  223 

This  same  year  (1869)  was  memorable  for  another 
event.  The  expediency  of  reviving  the  office  of 
so-called  suffragan  bishops  had  been  talked  about 
and  written  about ;  it  remained  for  Dr.  Wordsworth, 
instead  of  writing  about  the  work  and  talking  about 
it,  to  do  it.  There  was  no  reason  why  it  should  not 
have  been  done  before.  There  was  an  Act  of 
Henry  VIII.  which  authorized  the  appointment  of 
suffragans,  still  unrepealed,  but  it  had  fallen  into 
abeyance  soon  after  it  had  been  placed  on  the 
Statute  Book,  and  through  lapse  of  time  and  habitual 
desuetude  came  to  be  regarded  as  a  dead  letter. 

The  revived  activity  of  the  Church  naturally 
raised  a  cry  for  more  bishops,  but  this  obvious  plan 
of  relieving  the  overtaxed  bishop  of  part  of  his 
work,  though  it  was  not  forgotten,  had,  until  Dr. 
Wordsworth's  action,  found  none  possessed  of 
enough  energy  or  courage  to  carry  it  out.  It  had 
been  in  Dr.  Wordsworth's  mind  for  many  years. 
So  early  as  the  31st  of  December,  i860,  we  find 
him  writing  to  his  friend  Chancellor  Massingberd  : — 

The  main  difficulty  that  strikes  me  as  to  suffragans  (as 
they  are  called)  is  this  :  Suppose  a  bishop  to  nominate  a 
suffragan,  and  suppose  the  bishop  to  die.  and  the  suffragan 
to  survive,  what  is  to  become  of  him  ?  He  is  a  bishop, 
indelibly  such.  Suppose  the  successor  to  his  chief  to  be  a 
different  man  from  his  predecessor  in  many  material  re- 
spects, would  not  a  great  embarrassment  arise  ?  What  is 
the  solution  ?  While  I  own  this,  I  would  not  deny  that 
some  use  might  be  made  of  chorepiscopi  ;  but  it  seems  to 
me  that  the  main  thing  is,  aim  at  the  subdivision  of 
dioceses. 


224       THE  EPISCOPATE— FIRST  THREE  YEARS.  [1869— 

It  Is  almost  needless  to  observe  how  true  a 
prophet  Dr.  Wordsworth  showed  himself  in  this 
letter  ;  the  "  case  in  view  "  became  a  "  case  in  fact," 
not,  indeed,  happily  through  any  difference  between 
two  successive  bishops,  but  through  a  subdivision  of 
the  diocese. 

At  the  presentation  of  his  portrait  to  Dr.  Parry, 
the  Suffragan  Bishop  of  Dover  (December  8th, 
1886),  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  said, — 

My  honoured  and  dearest  friend,  the  late  Bishop  of  Lin- 
coln, had  been  for  some  time  agitating  for  the  revival  of 
suffragan  bishops.  When  we  went  with  Bishop  Tait  to 
Mr.  Gladstone  on  the  subject,  the  right  honourable  gentle- 
man asked  Bishop  Wordsworth  if  he  himself  desired  a 
suffragan.  Lifting  up  both  his  hands  above  his  head,  the 
bishop  said,  "  I  not  only  earnestly  desire  it,  but  daily  pray 
for  it." 

In  the  very  first  year  of  his  episcopate  he  pre- 
sented a  petition  to  the  Crown,  "  that  he  might  have 
the  assistance  of  a  bishop  suffragan  according  to  the 
ancient  use  of  this  realm  before  and  after  the  Refor- 
mation." He  was,  as  he  himself  gratefully  owns, 
cordially  supported  in  his  petition  by  the  Premier, 
Mr.  Gladstone,  and  the  petition  was  granted.  He 
sent  in  two  names  to  the  Prime  Minister,  that  of 
Henry  Mackenzie,  Archdeacon  of  Nottingham,  and 
that  of  Francis  Morse,  Vicar  of  S.  JMary's,  Notting- 
ham. The  former  was  chosen,  and  on  the  2nd  of 
February,  1870,  the  Festival  of  the  Presentation  of 
Christ  in  the  Temple,  Dr.  Henry  Mackenzie  was 
consecrated    at   S.    Mary's,    Nottingham,    the    first 


—1872.]  FIRST  SUFFRAGAN  BP.  OF  NOTTINGHAM.    225 

Suffragan  Bishop  of  Nottingham.''  Canon  Morse 
preached  the  consecration  sermon.  A  special  in- 
terest was  given  to  the  consecration  service  by  the 
presence  of  Alexander  Lycurgus,  Archbishop  of 
Syra,  Tenos,  and  Delos,  and  other  islands  of  the 
^gean.  The  day  was  a  happy  beginning  of  an 
uniformly  happy  relationship  between  the  Bishops  of 
Lincoln  and  Nottingham.  From  Dr.  Mackenzie  and 
his  successor,  Dr.  Trollope,  Dr.  Wordsworth  received 
most  efficient  help  in  his  huge,  unwieldy  diocese. 
His  promptitude,  which  led  him,  instead  of  being 
daunted  by  difficulty,  to  conquer  it  on  the  simple 
"  solvitur  ambulando  "  principle,  was  crowned  with 
the  success  it  deserved.  "  It  had  shown,"  as  the 
preacher  of  the  consecration  sermon  happily  ob- 
served, "  that  by  God's  mercy  one  decided  man 
could  so  put  forward  and  persevere  in  a  principle  of 
righteousness  as  to  carry  it  in  spite  of  all  obstacles." 
And  more  than  this  ;  it  gave  an  impulse  to  the 
extension  of  the  episcopate  for  which  this  was  only 
a  preparatory  step.  Dr.  Wordsworth  was  always 
careful  to  bring  this  fact  prominently  forward,  that 
he  did  not  regard  the  revival  as  final,  but  only  as  a 
stepping-stone  to  a  subdivision  of  dioceses   and  an 

^  Bishop  Mackenzie  on  the  day  of  his  consecration  lost  his 
purse,  which  suggested  the  following  hnes  to  the  Bishop  of  S. 
Andrew's,  who  was  present  and  took  part  in  the  service : — 

Quam  fausta  sancto  cuncta  contingunt  viro  ! 
Hodie  peractis  omnibus  solenniter, 
Ne  prsesuli  quid  desit  optimo,  tibi 
Bene  consulens  fur  surripit  /SaWdvTiov 

Q 


226      THE  EPISCOPATE— FIRST  THREE  YEARS.  [1869— 

increase  of  diocesan  bishops.  •  The  suffragan  was 
most  useful,  but  his  usefulness  was  limited  ;  he  had, 
for  instance,  no  episcopal  jurisdiction  (as  Dr.  Words- 
worth pointed  out).  It  was  Dr.  Wordsworth's 
happiness  to  see  at  the  commencement  of  his  epis- 
copate the  successful  result  of  the  preparatory 
measure,  and  at  the  close  of  that  episcopate  the 
final  completion  of  the  work  In  the  subdivision  of 
the  diocese.  It  need  only  be  added  that  the  sti- 
pend of  the  suffragan  bishop  was  paid  out  of  the 
revenues  of  the  see,  but  the  diminution  of  his  income 
was  to  a  man  like  Dr.  Wordsworth  but  as  dust  in 
the  balance  compared  with  the  advantages  which  the 
arrangement  brought  about. 

In  1870  Bishop  Wordsworth  held  his  primary 
visitation,  and  his  charge  on  that  occasion  was  of 
course  listened  to  with  great  attention  as  a  manifesto 
of  his  future  course.  It  was  eminently  characteristic 
of  the  man.  There  was  much  significance  in  the 
fact  that  it  commenced  with  a  rapid  survey  of  the 
state  of  Christendom,  and  especially  of  the  Roman 
and  Greek  Churches.  The  former  had  been  brought 
prominently  before  his  notice  by  the  fact  that  it  had 
lately  held  its  so-called  CEcumenlcal  Council  at  the 
Vatican,  which,  among  other  things,  promulgated 
the  decree  that  the  Roman  Pontiff,  when  speaking 
ex  cathedra  on  matters  of  faith  and  morals  was  to 
be  regarded  as  infallible  ;  while  in  the  Greek  Church 
his  Interest  had  been  quickened  by  the  recent  visit 
of  the  Archbishop  of  Syra,  whom  he  had  welcomed 


—  1872.]        FIRST  CHARGE— POOR  BENEFICES.  227 

with  great  delight  at  Riseholme,  and  in  the  cathedral 
church  at  Lincoln,  and  at  S.  Mary's,  Nottingham. 
It  was  not  merely  Dr.  Wordsworth's  intense  anti- 
Roman  feeling  on  the  one  hand,  and  his  yearning 
for  unity  (to  which  he  regarded  the  friendly  visit 
of  the  Greek  ecclesiastics  as  an  important  step)  on 
the  other,  that  led  him  to  place  these  subjects  in  the 
forefront  of  his  charge.  It  was  strictly  in  accordance 
with  his  large  views  of  the  episcopal  office  ;  he  felt 
that  he  was  not  only  a  diocesan  Bishop  in  the 
national  Church  of  England,  but  that  he  also  be- 
longed to  the  hierarchy  of  the  Church  Catholic. 

In  the  same  year  there  was  formed  under  the 
auspices  of  the  new  Bishop  an  "  Association  for  the 
Augmentation  of  the  Incomes  of  the  Poorer  Benefices 
of  the  County  of  Lincoln."  The  circumstances  of 
the  County  of  Lincoln  rendered  such  an  institution 
peculiarly  necessary.  Lincolnshire  contains  a  vast 
number  of  small  parishes,  with  populations  ranging 
from  40  to  400.  In  olden  times  such  parishes 
had  been  served  by  clergymen — sometimes  the  in- 
cumbent, more  often  a  stipendiary  curate — who  lived 
in  the  neighbouring  market-town.  Dr.  Words- 
worth's two  predecessors  had  both  of  them  made 
raids  upon  this  system.  "  We  must  disturb  this  nest 
of  rooks,"  said  good  Bishop  Kaye  at  Louth,  which, 
as  a  singularly  picturesque  and  healthy  little  town, 
was  a  favourite  place  of  residence  for  the  clergy. 
When  Dr.  Wordsworth  came  into  the  diocese,  almost 
every  little    Lincolnshire   village   had   its   parsonage 

Q  2 


228      THE  EPISCOPATE— FIRST  THREE  YEARS.  [1869— 

and  resident  parson.  This  was  a  beautiful  system 
in  theory,  but  did  not  work  so  well  in  practice,  for 
many  of  the  clergy  had  both  too  little  work  and  too 
small  an  income  ;  and  it  was  to  remedy,  in  some 
decree,  the  latter  defect   that  the   Association  was 

o 

instituted.  It  was  at  the  meeting  of  a  Lay  Con- 
ference at  Lincoln,  on  the  5th  of  August,  1869,  that 
the  scheme  was  floated,  and  it  prospered  so  well  that 
about  two  years  after,  when  a  pastoral  staff  was 
presented  to  the  Bishop  the  donors  could  congratu- 
late him  on  the  success  of  the  effort  ;  and  at  each 
triennial  visitation  he  could  report  its  increased 
prosperity. 

Of  course  it  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  the  manage- 
ment of  the  Association  was  in  the  hands  of  the 
bishop.  It  could,  indeed,  never  have  succeeded  as 
it  did  without  his  stimulus  ;  but  he  would  have  been 
the  first  to  own  the  great  obligation  the  Association 
was  under  to  others,  and  especially  to  his  subsequent 
coadjutor  in  the  episcopate,  the  present  Bishop  of 
Nottingham,  whose  long  connection  with  the  diocese, 
and  intimacy  with  many  of  its  leading  families  fitted 
him  admirably  for  such  an  undertaking.  Dr.  Trol- 
lope's  munificence  and  laborious  exertions  in  con- 
nection with  this  Association  were  highly  appreciated 
by  the  Bishop,  who,  in  later  years,  received  in  in- 
numerable ways  most  efficient  aid  from  the  same 
source. 

One  other  public  appearance  of  Dr.  Wordsworth 
in  1870  deserves  notice.     In  the  spring  he  attended 


—  1872.]  DIOCESAN  SYNOD.  229 

a  meeting  of  clergy  and  laity  of  the  diocese  at 
Newark  called  to  consider  the  subject  of  Mr. 
Forster's  Education  Bill,  which  three  months  later 
became  law.  The  feeling  at  that  meeting  and 
throughout  the  country  was  in  favour  of  the  Bill, 
but  this  did  not  prevent  the  Bishop  from  speaking 
strongly  against  it.  It  was  one  of  the  first  occasions, 
but  very  far  from  being  the  last,  on  which  he  ran 
counter  to  public  opinion. 

As  Bishop  Wordsworth  was  the  first  to  revive  an 
ancient  Church  ofBce,  so  was  he  also  the  first  to 
revive  an  ancient  Church  assembly.  The  Lincoln 
Diocesan  Synod  was  the  first  of  its  kind  that  had 
been  held  for  many  generations.^  Synods,  like 
suffragan  bishops,  had  been  talked  and  written  about, 
but  it  remained  for  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln  to  attempt 
to  realize  them.  Just  before  his  elevation  to  the 
bench  we  find  him  writing  to  Chancellor  Massing- 
berd,  on  the  5th  of  November,  1868  : — 

I  am  rejoiced  to  see,  my  dear  friend,  that  you  have  lifted 
up  your  voice  in  behalf  of  Diocesan  Synods,  and  thank  you 
much  for  allowing  me  the  pleasure  of  listening  to  it.  I 
have  just  been  reading  your  letter  to  your  bishop  (Dr. 
Jackson)  with  very  great  gratification,  and  earnestly  hope 
that  your  arguments,  which  seem  to  me  to  be  perfectly 
unanswerable,  may  prevail.     If  we  had  had  our  Diocesan 

^^  The  Synod  held  at  Exeter  in  185 1  "could  hardly,"  Bishop 
Wordsworth  remarked,  "  be  called  a  Diocesan  Synod  in  the 
proper  sense  of  the  term,  as  it  consisted  merely  of  delegates ; 
whereas  at  Lincoln  all  priests  and  dtacons  exercising  ministerial 
functions  in  the  diocese  were  summoned." 


230       THE  EPISCOPATE— FIRST  THREE  YEARS.  [1869— 

Synods  in  proper  working  order  five  years  ago,'  we  should 
have  been  spared  all  these  profitless  and  vexatious  con- 
troversies on  ritualistic  matters,  and  not  have  been  in  peril 
of  a  schism,  as  a  consequence  of  secular  legislation  upon 
them.  And  I  cannot  but  think  that  the  life  of  our  dear 
and  revered  primate  (Archbishop  Longley)  might  have  been 
preserv^ed,  which  was  embittered,  and  I  believe  shortened, 
by  the  worry  and  anxiety  produced  by  these  unhappy 
bickerings.  He  is  taken  away  in  mercy  from  the  evil  to 
come. 

Dr.  Wordsworth  little  thought  when  he  wrote 
these  words  that  one  result  of  the  archbishop's  death 
would  be  the  removal  of  himself  to  Lincoln,  and  that 
the  next  application  for  a  Synod  would  be  to  himself 
as  bishop  of  that  see.  Holding  the  views  he  did,  he 
of  course  received  with  favour  a  memorial  from  430 
of  his  clergy,  requesting  him  to  convene  a  Diocesan 
Synod.  But  at  the  same  time  he  v/as  thoroughly 
determined  that  if  it  did  take  place  it  should  be  con- 
ducted strictly  according  to  ancient  precedent,  and, 
above  all  things,  that  it  should  not  degenerate  into  a 
mere  debating  assembly.  That  there  was  some  fear 
of  this  is  evident  from  the  following  private  letter  to 
Chancellor  Massingberd,  which  throws  some  light 
upon  the  strong  and  decisive  language  which  the 
bishop  used  on  the  point  at  the  Synod  itself : — 

*  The  Bishop  of  S.  Andrew's  writes  :  "  These  words  require  to 
be  borne  in  mind.  It  can  scarcely  be  said  that  the  plan  adopted 
by  my  brother  in  his  siin.:;lc  Synod  was  one  to  7O0rk.  ...  I  ven- 
tured to  tc'l!  him  so  at  the  time.  .  .  .  Till  your  dioceses  are 
smaller,  you  must  be  content  with  delegates  (taken  from  above  a 
certain  age,  or  otherwise  chosen),  and  they  must  meet  annually." 


— 1872.]  DIOCESAN  SYNOD.  231 

RiseJiolnic,  July  17,  1871. 
My  dear  Chancellor, — Allow  me  to  express  an 
earnest  hope  that  the  Committee  appointed  to  submit  to 
me  proposals  concerning  our  future  Synod  will  have  the 
goodness  to  examine  and  consider  very  carefully  the 
history  of  Diocesan  Synods,  both  in  the  Church  Universal 
and  in  the  Church  of  England.  It  is  very  desirable  that 
in  reviving  what  has  long  been  dormant,  we  should  dili- 
gently study  ancient  precedents,  such  as  are  given  by 
Lambertini,  and  especially  since  his  time  by  Gavanti,  and 
also  those  given  by  Wake  and  Wilkins,  to  say  nothing  of 
your  friend  Joyce.  I  should  therefore  be  thankful  for  a 
conference  with  the  Committee  before  it  makes  any  report 
to  me,  and  I  should  be  obliged  to  you  to  communicate  this 
wish  to  the  Committee  at  the  next  meeting. 

On  the  22nd  of  July,  1871,  he  writes  to  the  Chan- 
cellor again : — 

I  am  very  thankful  for  the  result  of  the  conference  at 
the  Archdeaconry  yesterday,  which  at  first  caused  me  no 
little  anxiety.  I  earnestly  hope  that  the  members  of  the 
Committee  will  follow  your  example  and  that  of  some 
others,  and  divest  themselves  of  the  prepossessions  which 
they  may  have  brought  to  the  consideration  of  this  very 
grave  subject,  in  consequence  of  the  anomalies  and  con- 
fusions which  have  been  most  unfortunately  introduced 
into  it  by  modern  practice,  and  that  they  will  carefully  and 
conscientiously  devote  themselves  to  the  study  of  the  sub- 
ject, in  the  records  of  the  history  of  Diocesan  Synods  in 
the  Church  Universal  and  the  Church  of  England.  It 
seems  to  me  that  a  cheap  reprint  of  the  earlier  portions  of 
your  letter  to  my  predecessor  would  be  of  great  use,  to- 
gether with  an  extract  from  the  "  Reformatio  Legum  in 
extenso  de  Synodo  Diocesana."  I  am  endeavouring  to 
put  together  for  the  private  consideration  of  the  Dean  and 
Chapter,  a  small  brochure  with  the  title  "Order  of  holding 


232       THE  EPISCOPATE— FIRST  THREE   YEARS.  [1869— 

a  Diocesan  Synod  in  the  Cathedral  Church  of  Lincoln  on 
Wednesday,  September  20,  1 871,  together  with  the  matters 
to  be  treated  of  and  agreed  on  there.'^ 

The  Synod  was  duly  held.  The  Bishop  sent  a 
notice  to  his  rural  deans  authorizing  them  "  to 
desire  the  attendance  of  all  priests  and  deacons  in 
their  deaneries  who  were  beneficed  or  licensed 
therein."  A  similar  notice  was  addressed  to  the 
Dean  for  the  citation  of  the  members  of  the  cathe- 
dral church.  More  than  500  clergy  accepted  the 
invitation.  They  assembled  at  the  Old  Palace  and 
proceeded  in  surplices  to  the  western  door  of  the 
cathedral,  where  they  were  met  by  the  cathedral 
staff.  A  special  service  was  drawn  up  by  the  Bishop 
after  ancient  models,  and  after  the  Nicene  Creed  he 
delivered  his  address,  the  title  of  which  tells  its  own 
tale:  "  Diocesan  Synods  and  Diocesan  Conferences 
their  distinctive  characters  and  different  uses."  In 
this  address  he  gave  a  significant  hint  as  to  what  he 
wished  the  Synod  7tot  to  do,  as  well  as  what  he  wished 
it  to  do. 

No,  my  reverend  brethren,  the  truth  must  be  spoken 
however  unpleasing  it  may  be  to  some  men's  ears  in 
modern  times.  During  sixteen  hundred  years  after  Christ 
a  Diocesan  Synod  was  called  the  Synod  of  the  Bishop.  The 
canons  and  constitutions  published  therein  were  said  to 
be  promulgcd  by  the  bishop.  It  never  occurred  to  the 
mind  of  ancient  Christendom  that  the  bishops  of  Christ's 
Church,  seated  in  their  cathedral  churches,  would  enter 
into  the  lists  of  controversy  with  the  clergy  of  their  dioceses 
divided  into  opposite  camps.  This  was  not  their  view  of 
episcopacy.     In  their  eyes  the  bishop  was  a  father  in  God  ; 


I 


— 1872.]  DIOCESAN  SYNOD.  233 

and  while  on  the  one  hand  it  was  presumed  that  the  clergy- 
would  trust  their  spiritual  father  with  filial  reverence,  it  was 
anticipated  on  the  other  that  he  would  endeavour  to  rule  with 
parental  love,  and  that  he  would  not  obtrude  his  own  private 
opinions  on  a  reluctant  clergy,  but  that  he  would  pray  fer- 
vently to  God  for  grace  and  guidance,  and  give  himself  to 
diligent  study  and  devout  meditation,  and  would  seek  to  lead 
the  clergy  by  wise  counsels  and  gentle  persuasion  to  right 
conclusions,  and  with  their  help  would  embody  and  con- 
centrate those  conclusions  in  synodical  utterances,  which 
would  have  great  force  and  weight  by  reason  of  previous 
consultation  and  general  subsequent  assent.  .  .  .  But 
perhaps  it  may  be  alleged,  by  some  among  ourselves,  that 
Diocesan  Synods  will  be  tame  and  lifeless  things,  unless 
they  are  animated  by  the  quick  sallies  and  lively  repartees 
of  eager  and  excited  debate.  Brethren,  such  an  objection 
should  have  been  considered,  and,  I  trust,  was  considered 
by  you,  before  you  desired  me  to  convene  the  present 
Diocesan  Synod.^  You  have  asked  for  a  Diocesan  Synod, 
and  I  should  have  been  unworthy  of  your  confidence  if  I 
had  endeavoured  to  palm  upon  you  a  counterfeit  assembly 
instead  of  presenting  to  you  a  genuine  and  authentic 
Synod,  constituted  upon  those  principles,  and  regulated  by 
those  laws,  which  were  universally  received  by  the  Christian 
Church  for  1600  years,  and  which  were  specially  prescribed 
for  our  observance  by  those  holy  men  to  whom,  under 
God,  we  owe  the  inestimable  blessing  of  the  English 
Reformation. 

These  dignified  and  weighty  words  gave  the  true 
keynote  to  the  subsequent  dehberations.     After  a 

^  It  is  not  perhaps  certain  whether  all  who  asked  for  a  Synod 
knew  what  they  meant.  Bishop  Philpotts'  was  a  representative 
assembly  of  clergy.  That  which  was  becoming  prevalent  in  the 
Colonies,  was  a  mixed  one  of  elected  clergy  and  elected  laity. 
But  Bishop  Wordsworth's  idea  of  a  Synod  was  the  old  one — 
"  totus  cierus,"  meeting  under  certain  restrictions. 


234      THE  EPISCOPATE— FIRST  THREE    YEARS.  [1869— 

celebration  of  the  Holy  Communion  the  bishop  and 
clergy,  two  and  two,  proceeded  to  the  chapter-house. 
It  would  seem  that  the  bishop  would  himself  have 
preferred  the  nave  of  the  cathedral ;  but,  so  long 
as  a  principle  was  not  involved,  he  was  always  ready 
to  give  way.  '*  I  believe,"  he  writes  to  Chancellor 
Massingberd,  on  the  9th  of  August,  1871,  "that  the 
Dean  would  prefer  that  the  nave  should  not  be  used 
for  the  session  of  the  Synod,  and  I  should  be  very 
sorry  that  he  should  be  in  any  way  disconcerted  ;  and 
therefore  I  shall  be  quite  content  with  the  chapter- 
house, and  am  quite  prepared  to  say  that  I  appoint 
that  place  with  the  consent  of  the  Dean  and 
Chapter." 

The  Synod  was  conducted  strictly  in  accordance 
with  the  Bishop's  ideas,  and  the  matters  treated  of 
were  of  the  utmost  practical  importance.  The 
formation  of  a  Diocesan  Conference  was  arranged  ; 
committees  were  formed  for  investigating  the  sub- 
jects of  Endowed  Grammar  Schools,  of  Church 
Patronage,  of  Elementary  Weekday  Schools-  and 
Sunday  Schools,  and  valuable  reports  were  drawn 
up,  printed,  and  circulated  by  these  committees. 
The  sending  of  a  synodical  letter  of  sympathy  with 
the  Old  Catholics  was  also  approved  of.  Nor  was 
the  Synod  a  mere  echo  of  the  bishop's  own  senti- 
ments ;  on  the  contrary,  one  very  important  point, 
viz.  the  number  of  ex-officio  members  at  the  Dio- 
cesan Conferences,  was  not  carried,  because  the  pro- 
posal did  not  meet  with  the  approval  of  the  general 


—1872.]  ' SYNOD'  AND  'Conference:  235 

body  of  the  clergy.  The  following  letter  to  the 
Rev.  J.  Wayland  Joyce  is  a  happy  instance  of  that 
thoughtful  courtesy  which  always  distinguished  Dr. 
Wordsworth,  and  which  in  this  case  led  him  to  pay 
honour  to  whom  honour  was  due,  for  Prebendary 
Joyce  had  done  more  perhaps  than  any  living  man 
to  make  Churchmen  understand  the  proper  constitu- 
tion of  Church  assemblies:  — 

Riseholme,  Aug.  14,  1871. 
My  dear  Joyce, — It  is  due  to  you,  as  the  author  of 
the  learned  work  on  "  England's  Sacred  Synods,"  to  state 
the  principles  on  which  I  am  endeavouring  to  restore 
synodical  action  in  this  diocese.  I  therefore  send  you  the 
enclosed.  You  will  see  by  these  papers  that  it  is  my 
desire  to  have  tzvo  distinct  institutions  in  this  diocese. 

1,  The  Diocesan  Synod,  constituted  in  the  manner  and 
on  the  principles  received  by  the  Church  for  seventeen 
centuries. 

2.  The  Diocesan  Conference,  a  mixed  body  {commixtus) 
of  clergy  and  laity. 

The  "  Synod"  is  to  take  its  part  in  all  matters  concerning 
"  divine  learning  "  and  the  discipline  and  sacred  offices  of 
the  Church. 

The  "  Conference "  is  to  deal  with  mixed  matters,  the 
relation  of  the  State  to  the  Church,  finance,  ecclesiastical 
maintenance  of  clergy  and  fabrics,  &c. 

As  you  have  done  so  much  to  vindicate  and  maintain 
the  principles  on  which  we  propose  to  act  in  this  diocese 
in  this  matter,  and  to  put  the  matter  in  its  true  light,  I 
write  to  acknowledge  our  obligations  to  you. 

It  will  doubtless  have  been  remarked  by  those 
who  are  familiar  with  the  history  of  Dr.  Words- 
worth's Episcopate,  that  this  Synod,  far  from  being 


236       THE  EPISCOPATE— FIRST  THREE  YEARS.  [1S69— 

annual,   was  an  isolated   event   in  that  Episcopate. 
The    name    of   Synod    has    been    applied    in   other 
dioceses  (whether  rightly  or  wrongly  it  is  not  for  us 
to  decide),  to  the  annual  representative  conferences 
of  clergy  and  laity.     This,  as  has  been  already  seen, 
was  not   Dr.  Wordsworth's  opinion  ;  and  the  diffi- 
culties  presented   by    such   gatherings   as  that  just 
described  (especially  in  a  large  and  scattered  dio- 
cese like  Lincoln,  which  then  contained  1000  clergy), 
would  prevent  their  frequent  recurrence.     Less  need 
be  said  of  the  Diocesan  Conference,  which  was  one 
of  the  results  of  the  Synod,  and  which  met  for  the 
first    time,  under  the  presidentship  of  Dr.   Words- 
worth, on  the  25th   of  September,  1872,  and   con- 
tinued  to  meet  annually  during  the   whole  of  his 
episcopate.     Fifteen  years  ago  Diocesan  Conferences 
were  not  so  common  as  they  are  now  ;  nevertheless 
the  event  was  not,  like  the  Synod,  almost  unique  ; 
neither  did  it  bear  so  markedly  the  impress  of  the 
bishop's  own  hand.      It  consisted  of  an  equal  num- 
ber (250)  of  clergy  and  laity,  each  elected  by  their 
own   order,   with  the  exception  of  a  few    ex-officio 
members,     and    was    fairly    representative    of    the 
diocese.      It  really  was  a   sort  of  expansion  of  the 
Lay  Conference  which  met  for  the  first  time  in  1869, 
and  of  which   (as,   indeed,  of  the    Diocesan    Con- 
ference,   too)    the  present    Bishop   of   Nottingham 
(Dr.  Trollope)  was  the   leading  spirit.     The  main 
burden  of  organizing    this    important    assembly  lay 
upon    him,  but   in    this  as    in    every    other    matter 


—1 8/2.]  FIRST  DIOCESAN  CONFERENCE.  237 

he  acted  in  perfect  harmony  with  Bishop  Words- 
worth. 

That  the  Bishop  was  satisfied  with  the  result  of 
the  Conference  was  shown  by  a  letter  to  Chancellor 
Massingberd,  which  has  a  melancholy  interest  of  its 
own  as  being  the  last  of  a  long  series  of  letters,  ex- 
tending over  many  years,  to  his  old  friend,  who 
entered  into  his  rest  a  few  weeks  after  its  receipt. 

Riseholme,  All  Saints'  Eve. 
My  dear  Friend, — Pray  let  me  have  a  line  to  say  how 
you  and  Mrs.  Massingberd  are.  I  was  very  sorry  you 
could  not  be  at  the  D.  Conference,  and  think  you  would 
have  been  pleased  with  it.  What  gratifies  me  most  is  to 
think  that,  by  God's  goodness,  we  have  now  in  this 
diocese, 

1.  A  Synod, 

2.  A  Conference  ; 

each  with  its  proper  and  distinct  functions,  and  each  help- 
ing the  other  in  its  own  way,  for  the  same  good  and  holy 
ends.  With  our  united  love  to  Mrs,  Massingberd,  believe 
me, 

Your  affectionate  friend  and  brother, 

C.  Lincoln. 

In  connection  with  this  first  Diocesan  Conference 
an  interesting  event  took  place.  Before  it  met,  the 
pastoral  staff,  already  referred  to,  was  presented  to 
him,  the  gift  of  a  large  number  of  the  clergy  and  laity 
of  the  diocese.  The  Archdeacon  of  Stow  (Dr.  Trol- 
lope)  had  issued  a  circular  to  the  rural  deans,  suggest- 
ing that  "  on  the  occasion  of  the  first  meeting  of  the 
newly-constituted  Diocesan  Conference  such  an  offer- 
ing  would    probably    be    considered    appropriate." 


238      THE  EPISCOPATE— FIRST  THREE   YEARS.  [1869— 


An  appeal  was  made  and  so  heartily  responded  to 
that  "more  than  sufficient  means  to  procure  the 
most  beautiful  staff  that  art  could  design  and  skill 
execute  was  soon  received."  The  design  was 
carried  out  by  Mr.  J.  Barkentin,  under  the  superin- 
tendence of  the  Rev.  F.  H.  (now  Canon)  Sutton. 
The  dedicatory  inscription  is  :  "  Christophoro  Epis- 
copo  Lincolniensi  et  successoribus  Clerici  et  Fideles, 
D.D.,  A.S.,  MDCCCLXXIL— Prsesis  ut  Prosis." 
The  presentation  was  made  in  the  open  air,  "  with 
the  venerable  cathedral  on  one  side,  the  ruins  of  the 
ancient  palace  of  the  predecessors  of  the  Bishop  on 
another,  and  the  busy  modern  city  of  Lincoln  below." 
Earl  Brownlow,  lord-lieutenant  of  the  county,  after 
a  few  introductory  words,  requested  the  Arch- 
deacon of  Stow  to  read  the  presentation  address, 
which  touched  upon  the  appointment  of  a  suffragan 
bishop,  the  Diocesan  Synod,  the  Poor  Benefices' 
Augmentation  Association,  and  the  Lay  Council, 
"  now  just  about  to  expand  into  a  Diocesan  Con- 
ference." The  Bishop,  who  looked,  it  was  said,  like 
one  of  the  ancient  Fathers  of  the  Church,  in  his 
Convocation  robes,  made  a  happy  and  graceful  reply, 
after  which,  with  the  staff  in  his  left  hand,  he  raised 
his  right  hand  and  pronounced  the  Benediction. 

The  first  three  or  four  years  of  Bishop  Words- 
worth's episcopate  might  be  described  as  the  era  of 
public  meetings  ;  for  it  was  in  connection  with  these 
that  his  name  came  most  prominently  before  the 
public.     Of  course  such  work  continued  all  through 


—  1 872.]     CHURCH  CONGRESS  AT  NOTTINGHAM.  239 

his  episcopate,  but  it  will  not  be  necessary  to  dwell 
so  much  upon  this  phase  of  his  life  in  his  later  years. 
We  have  yet  two  more  meetings  to  describe  before 
we  pass  to  another  class  of  subjects. 

In  October,  1871,  the  Church  Congress  was  held 
at  Nottingham,  with  Bishop  Wordsworth  as  presi- 
dent ;  and  on  this  occasion  the  bishop  showed, 
to  the  surprise  of  m.any  who  had  thought  of  him 
merely  as  the  learned  divine,  how  admirably  he 
could  adapt  himself  to  the  difficult  task  of  presiding 
over  a  large  and  sometimes  excited  assembly.  He 
always  kept  the  meeting  well  in  hand,  and,  with  the 
utmost  firmness,  though  at  the  same  time  with  the 
utmost  courtesy,  maintained  his  own  position  as  the 
head  of  it.  Another  feature  of  his  character  was 
brought  out  on  this  occasion.  The  Dissenters  of 
the  town  not  only  showed  great  interest  in  the  pro- 
ceedings, but  also  contributed  to  the  completeness 
of  the  arrangements  by  various  acts  of  courtesy. 
The  Bishop  gracefully  and  publicly  acknowledged 
the  obligations  the  Congress  was  under  to  them  ;  and 
some  people  knew  him  so  little  as  to  express  sur- 
prise that  so  stiff  a  Churchman  should  have  spoken 
in  such  terms  ;  but,  in  point  of  fact,  he  was  so  far 
from  being  embarrassed  with  his  task  that  he  evi- 
dently hailed  with  delight  the  opportunity  of  ex- 
pressing kindly  Christian  feelings  without  sacrificing 
any  principle. 

That  Bishop  Wordsworth's  fulfilment  of  his  duties 
as  President  was  thoroughly  appreciated  is  shown  in 


240         THE  EPISCOPATE— FIRST  THREE  YEARS.  [1872. 

the  last  sentence  of  the  official  report  of  the  Congress  : 
"  The  desire  to  speak  the  truth  in  love  was  one  of  the 
characteristics  of  the  Nottingham  Church  Congress, 
a  result  which  we  trace  with  deep  thankfulness  to 
the  presence  of  the  Divine  Spirit  of  truth  and  love 
in  our  midst,  and  for  which,  under  Him,  we  are 
indebted  very  chiefly  to  the  dignity,  and  the  firmness, 
and  the  learning,  and  the  love  of  our  revered  and 
admirable  president,  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln."  *'  To 
speak  the  truth  in  love  "  was  the  very  motto  of  Dr. 
Wordsworth's  whole  life.^ 

In  1872  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln  was  present  and 
took  a  leading  part  at  a  still  more  important  as- 
sembly, or  at  any  rate  one  which  commanded  a 
wider  interest  than  any  that  have  yet  been  men- 
tioned, the  Old  Catholic  Congress  at  Cologne.  This 
is  fully  described  in  the  chapter  on  Bishop  Words- 
worth's intercourse  with  foreign  Churches. 

"  His  family  motto,   "  Veritas,"   was  expanded   by  him  into 
*'  Veritas  in  caritate." 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE  EPISCOPATE. 
BURNING  QUESTIONS. 

If  the  first  three  years  of  Bishop  Wordsworth's 
episcopate  may  be  termed  the  "  Congress  era,"  the 
next  three  may  with  equal  propriety  be  termed  "  the 
era  of  burning  questions."  Bishop  Wordsworth  was 
the  last  man  in  the  world  *to  shrink  from  dealing 
with  such  questions.  It  would  not  be  enough  to  say 
of  him  that  he  had  the  courage  of  his  convictions  ; 
he  had  more  than  that,  a  sort  of  chivalrous,  spiritual 
knight-errantry,  which  led  him  to  search  out  for 
such  questions,  grapple  with  them  manfully,  and 
probe  them  to  the  bottom.  This  combative  spirit 
would  have  brought  him  into  more  troubles  than  it 
did,  had  it  not  been  tempered  with  the  rare  courtesy 
of  a  truly  Christian  gentleman,  who  would  never  hit 
an  unfair  blow,  never  degenerate  into  personal  abuse, 
never  speak  evil  of  any  one  behind  his  back,  who 
always  strove  to  do  justice  to  the  good  side  of  an 
adversary's  position,  and  who,  from  choice,  always 
preferred  to  look  at  the  golden  rather  than  the  silver 
side  of  the  shield.  But  minimized  as  the  bishop's 
troubles  were  by  the  constant  exercise  of  these  Chris- 

R 


242     THE  EPISCOPATE— BURNING  QUESTIONS.    [1873— 


tian  graces,  they  nevertheless  thickened  upon  him, 
as  question  after  question  followed  in  rapid  succes- 
sion. 

First  came   his   controversy  with  the  Wesleyans. 
One  of  the  "  Agenda  avv  Oeo)  "  which  he   put  down 
at   the  beginning  of  his  episcopate,  was  "  Restora- 
tion of   Wesleyan    brethren    to    the    unity    of   the 
Church,"    and    he    must  have  been   continually   re- 
minded   of  his  resolve  by  what  he  saw  and  heard. 
Lincolnshire  was  the  birthplace  of  Methodism,  and 
has  been  ever  since  one  of  its  chief  strongholds.    As 
the  bishop  went  about  from  town  to  town,  and  from 
village  to  village,  visible  signs  of  the  system  would 
literally  stare  him   in   the  face  in  the  shape  of  the 
old-fashioned   square   brick   buildings,   or  the  new- 
fashioned  quasi-Gothic  edifices  which  are  taking  their 
place.     And  he  could  rarely  be  long  in  conversation 
with    any    parish    clergyman    about   parish   matters 
without   hearing    some    mention    of    the   Wesleyan 
Methodists.     He   did   not   shrink   from,  but  courted 
inquiry   into   the   subject  ;    and   the   result   was  the 
issue   of    his   famous    "  Pastoral    to    the   Wesleyan 
Methodists  in  the  Diocese  of  Lincoln,"  which  was 
first  published   in   June,    1873,   ^^^  rapidly  passed 
through   several "  editions.     It  was   an   appeal   from 
Wesleyanism  to  John  Wesley,  a  strong  representa- 
tion of  the  peril  of  schism  and  the  blessings  of  unity, 
and  an  invitation  to  a  friendly  conference  on  the  whole 
subject.     The  pastoral  filled  the  minds  of  many  of 
the   clergy   with   dismay  ;  they  feared  lest  it  should 


—iZjS.']  PASTORAL  TO  WESLEYAN  METHODISTS.      243 

bring  them  into  collision  with  some  of  the  most 
important  of  their  parishioners,  with  whom  they  had 
hitherto  perhaps  been  on  excellent  terms.  Many  of 
the  laity,  too,  regarded  the  publication  as  injudicious, 
to  say  the  least  of  it  ;  while  the  Wesleyans  them- 
selves, as  a  body,  were  indignant,  and  hurled  pamphlet 
after  pamphlet  at  the  devoted  bishop's  head.  But 
Dr.  Wordsworth  quietly,  yet  firmly,  maintained  his 
ground.  This  was  not  a  question  to  be  slurred 
over.  It  was  much  better  that  all  that  could  be  said 
upon  the  subject  sJiould  be  said  ;  and  with  Dr. 
Wordsworth's  strong  opinions  it  was  simply  impos- 
sible for  a  man  of  his  spirit  not  to  "  boult  the  matter 
to  the  bran."  And  if  some  of  the  clergy  regarded 
the  movement  with  alarm,  many  more  were  deeply 
grateful  to  their  intrepid  champion  ;  while  those  who 
disagreed  with  him  most,  whether  Wesleyans  or 
Churchmen,  all  owned  the  purity  of  his  motive  and 
the  straightforwardness  of  his  conduct.  The  bishop 
himself  never  repented  of  what  he  had  done. 

There  was  a  curious  episode  in  this  controversy 
with  the  Wesleyans  in  the  famous  Owston  Ferry 
tombstone  case.  The  whole  story  had  better  be 
told  in  the  .words  of  the  then  Chancellor  of  the 
Diocese,  Mr.  (now  Sir)  Walter  Phillimore,  who  has 
kindly  furnished  us  with  the  following  narrative  : — 

On  May  nth,  1874,  died  at  Owston  Ferry,  the  daughter 
of  a  Wesleyan  minister.  The  vicar,  observing  a  headstone 
in  preparation  which  bore  an  inscription  in  which  she  was 
described  as  "  the  younger  daughter  of  the  Reverend  H. 

R  2 


244     T^HE  EPISCOPATE— BURNING  QUESTIONS.    [1873— 

Keet,  Wesleyajt  Ministerl^  and  having  an  objection  to  titles 
being  placed  on  tombstones,  requested  that  the  words, 
"  the  Reverend  "  and  the  "  Wesleyan  Minister  "  should  be 
omitted.  Mr.  Keet  then  wrote  to  the  Bishop  a  letter  of 
inquiry  as  to  the  ecclesiastical  law  on  the  subject.  To  this 
the  Bishop  replied  on  the  nth  June,  "  that  it  is  the  duty  of 
an  incumbent  to  examine  the  epitaphs  which  it  may  be 
proposed  to  inscribe  on  gravestones  in  the  churchyard  of 
his  parish  ;  and  that  he  is  empowered  by  law  to  make 
objections  to  anything  in  them  which  in  his  judgment  is 
liable  to  exception."  Mr.  Keet  having  in  the  meanwhile 
written  to  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  wrote  again  to 
the  Bishop,  begging  his  "  kind  offices  with  the  vicar  that 
the  objection  may  be  withdrawn."  This  elicited  from  the 
Bishop  a  long  letter  of  the  i6th  of  July,  in  which  he  set 
forth  his  reasons  for  refusing  to  interfere.  In  it  he  says  : 
"  What  title  should  be  given  you  by  your  own  co-reli- 
gionists is  not  the  point  at  issue,  and  I  express  no  opinion 
upon  it.  But  the  question  is,  whether  the  title  of  reverend 
should  be  conceded  to  you  on  a  tombstone  by  ministers  of 
the  Church  of  England,  who  are  the  responsible  guardians 
of  her  churchyards." 

After  pointing  out  that  if  the  title  is  to  imply  holy 
orders,  "  the  laws  to  which  "  the  Bishop  is  ''  subject  would 
not  allow  "  him  "  to  recognize  him  in  that  capacity,"  and 
that  the  Wesleyan  Conference  twice  forbade  the  assumption 
of  the  title  "  reverend,"  he  wound  up  : — 

"  For  such  reasons  as  these  I  have  abstained  from  giving 
the  title  of  '  reverend  '  to  Wesleyan  preachers,  not  (I  need 
hardly  say)  from  any  feeling  of  disparagement  towards 
them,  but  because  I  honour  consistency  and  truth,  and 
because  I  am  sure  they  would  despise  me  if  I  acted  against 
my  conscience,  and  were  to  practise  that  kind  of  liberality 
which  courts  popularity  by  giving  away  what  does  not 
belong  to  it." 

It  will  be  observed  that  all  that  had  been  asked  of  the 


—1875.]  OWSTON  FERRY  CASE  245 

Bishop  was  that  he  would  use  his  "  kind  offices  "  with  the 
vicar.  He  had  indeed  no  power  in  the  matter.  After 
this  correspondence  Mr.  Keet  took  the  remedy  which  is 
open  to  any  one  who  desires  to  erect  a  memorial  to  the 
dead  in  church  or  churchyard,  but  who  cannot  get  the  in 
cumbent's  assent.  He  applied  to  the  Consistory  Court  of 
the  diocese  for  a  faculty.  He  was  assisted  by  the  com- 
mittee appointed  by  the  Wesleyan  Conference  to  watch 
over  their  rights  and  privileges.  Under  their  care  an 
elaborate  petition  for  a  faculty  was  presented  to  the  Court. 
In  this  petition  all  the  correspondence  between  Mr.  Keet 
and  the  vicar,  the  Bishop  and  the  Archbishop,  was  set  out  ; 
and  the  whole  can  be  found  enshrined  in  the  regular  Law 
Reports.^  The  Chancellor  of  the  diocese,  Dr.  Walter 
Phillimore,  refused  the  application  for  a  faculty.  On  an 
appeal  being  brought  to  the  Court  of  Arches,  the  judge, 
the  late  Sir  Robert  Phillimore,  confirmed  the  decision, 
though  on  somewhat  different  grounds.  The  Wesleyans 
then  appealed  to  the  Privy  Council,  and  the  Judicial  Com- 
mittee of  that  body  reversed  the  two  decisions,  and  ordered 
the  faculty. 

Though  the  Bishop  was  no  doubt  popularly  supposed  to 
have  a  great  share  in  the  Owston  Ferry  case,  he  had,  in 
fact,  very  little  to  do  with  it.  His  share  was  limited  to  the 
two  letters  above  quoted.  [The  action  of  the  vicar  had 
been  quite  unprompted  by  him  ;  he  had  no  real  power  to 
overrule  the  vicar.]  He  was  in  no  sense  a  party  to  the 
suit ;  and  when  the  matter  came  before  his  Court  he  left  it 
entirely  to  his  Chancellor.  The  decision  was  the  Chancel- 
lor's own.     The  Bishop  had  no  hand  in  it. 

The  following  extract  from  a  letter  written  by 
Mr.  Henry  Kirk,  of  Epworth,  who  was  at  the  time 
a  local  preacher  in  the  circuit  in  which  Owston  Ferry 

^  Law  Reports,  4  Adm.  and  Eccl.  pp.  39S — 408. 


246      THE  EPISCOPATE— BURNING  QUESTIONS.    [1873— 

is  situated,  but  is  now  a  staunch  Churchman,  will  be 
read  with  interest : — 

"  The  truly  Catholic  spirit  of  the  Bishop  was,  I  think, 
clearly  shown  during  the  course  of  the  investigation,  and 
to  which  all  the  Wesleyans  with  whom  I  had  any  conver- 
sation bore  testimony.  His  lordship  having  occasion  to 
pass  through  Ferry,  called  upon  Mr.  Keet  for  the  purpose 
of  conversing  with  him  on  the  subject,  but  not  finding  him 
at  home,  left  a  note  written  while  at  his  house,  expressing 
a  hope  that  the  affair  would  be  settled,  as  far  as  possible, 
in  the  spirit  of  Christianity.  The  note  itself  I  have  never 
seen,  but  from  what  I  have  heard  from  Wesleyans,  feel 
perfectly  satisfied  of  its  truly  pious  character,  and  believe 
the  writer  to  have  been  actuated  by  no  other  motives  than 
an  earnest  desire  to  do  justice  to  one  of  his  own  Clergy, 
and  at  the  same  time  to  exercise  true  Christian  charity  to 
a  minister  of  another  religious  community." 

The  Bishop  was  not  in  the  least  daunted  by  the 
strictures  which  his  attitude  towards  the  Wesleyans, 
especially  in  regard  to  the  Owston  Ferry  case,  drew 
upon  him.  The  "  friendly  conference  "  to  which  he 
invited  the  Wesleyans  in  his  pastoral  duly  took  place. 
Attended.by  three  chaplains  and  a  lay  friend,  he  met 
a  former  President  of  the  Wesleyan  Conference  and 
some  ministers  and  other  members  of  the  connection. 
He  expounded  to  them  his  views  of  the  relationship 
of  Wesleyanism  to  the  Church,  laying  great  stress 
upon  what  John  and  Charles  Wesley  had  said  and 
written  on  the  subject  ;  he  proposed  terms  on  which 
an  union  might  be  effected,  and  requested  that  his 
paper  might  be  communicated   "  with  his  respectful 


—1875.]  IRENICUM  WESLEYANUM.  247 

compliments "  to  the  President  of  the  Wesleyan 
Conference,  and  "with  the  cordial  assurance  that, 
though  the  Bishop,  while  asserting  what  he  believes 
to  be  fundamental  principles  of  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land, may  have  incurred  censure  and  obloquy  from 
some  (not,  however,  from  wise,  candid,  and  generous 
members  of  the  Wesleyan  body,  or  others  who 
would  have  justly  despised  him  if,  for  fear  of  censure 
or  for  the  sake  of  popularity,  he  had  sacrificed  what 
in  his  conscience  he  is  fully  persuaded  to  be  true), 
yet,  that  he  is,  and  ever  has  been,  animated  with 
feelings  of  Christian  charity  towards  Wesleyan 
Methodists,  whose  zeal  and  energy  he  greatly 
admires,  and  with  whom  he  earnestly  desires  to  be 
more  nearly  associated  in  the  bonds  of  Christian 
faith  and  love  ;  and  he  earnestly  prays,  that  if  the 
present  overtures  should  produce  no  other  result, 
they  may  at  least  be  accepted  as  an  evidence  of  that 
desire." 

These  sentiments  were,  we  believe,  reciprocated 
by  the  Wesleyan  Methodists  ;  they  respected  Bishop 
Wordsworth's  character,  though  they  did  not  see 
their  way  to  accept  his  overtures  ;  they  deeply  valued 
his  services  as  a  champion  of  Protestantism  ;  they 
believed  him  to  be  thoroughly  honest,  though,  in 
their  view,  mistaken.  The  Wesleyan  Conference  of 
1876  was  held  at  Nottingham,  and  the  bishop 
deemed  it  a  favourable  opportunity  for  publishing 
his  paper  under  the  title  of  "  Irenicum  Wesleyanum, 
or  Proposals  for  Union  with  the  Methodists,"  with  a 


248     THE  EPISCOPATE— BURNING  QUESTIONS.  [1873— 

view  to  its  being  submitted  for  consideration  at  the 
Conference.  It  is  needless  to  say  that  the  proposed 
union  was  not  accepted  ;  but  the  Bishop  always 
thought  that  the  question  had  by  no  means  been 
stirred  up  in  vain. 

As  if  the  Bishop  had  not  enough  upon  his  hands 
with  the  Wesleyans,  he  published,  in  the  same  year 
in  which  he  issued  his  "  Pastoral  to  the  Wesleyan 
Methodists"  (1873),  ^  sermon  preached  by  him  in 
Lincoln  Cathedral,  which,  as  he  must  have  known, 
could  hardly  fail  to  raise  against  him  a  storm  of 
opposition.  The  subject  was  "  On  Temperance 
Societies,"  and  he  spoke  strongly  against  the  total 
abstinence  pledge.  Expressions  were  used  which 
were  liable  to  misrepresentation,  though  perfectly 
justifiable  when  taken  with  their  context.  A  garbled 
version  of  the  bishop's  words,  printed  in  conspicuous 
type,  might  be  seen  exposed,  perhaps  in  a  public-house 
or  a  beer-shop,  amid  surroundings  which  presented 
the  strongest  conceivable  contrast  to  the  asceticism  of 
his  own  appearance,  and  the  simplicity  of  his  own 
habits  ;  while,  on  the  other  hand,  some  advocates  of 
total  abstinence  went  so  far  as  to  abuse  him  most 
"  intemperately "  (as  he  would  himself  have  said) 
for  this  expression  of  his  opinion.  But  he  was 
equally  averse  to  doing  evil  that  good  might 
come,  and  to  keeping  back  the  truth  for  fear  of  its 
being  perverted.  He  dreaded  the  evil  effects  of  the 
Manicheanism  ^  which  attempted  to  lay  down  restric- 

2  See  his  "  Church  History,'"  vol.  i.  198  ;  iv.  2,  71,  72,  where  S. 


—1875-]  TEMPERANCE  SOCIETIES.  249 

tions  with  regard  to  meats  and  drinks,  or  to  marriage, 
which  God  Himself  had  not  seen  fit  to  lay  down,  no 
less  than  the  evils  from  which  they  were,  and  in 
favour  of  which  they  often  produced,  a  reaction. 
How  strongly  he  felt  upon  the  subject  the  following 
letter  will  show  : — 

Riseholme,  Lmcoln, 

Nov.  %th,  1873. 
Dear  Sir, — I  thank  you    for  your  letter  and    for  the 
valuable  statement  of  your  opinion  and  experience. 

You  will  pardon  me,  I  hope,  for  saying  that  it  is  very 
difficult  to  say  who  are  "  total  abstainers  ;"  some  who  are 
so  nominally  are  not  really.  Besides,  some  who  abstain 
from  fermented  liquors  are  remarkable  for  excess  in  eating 
and  smoking.  My  travels  in  Greece  brought  me  in  contact 
with  Turks  who  called  themselves  "total  abstainers,"  but 
were  notorious  for  surfeiting  and  other  licentiousness.  I 
fear  that  many  of  our  ^'  Good  Templars  "  would  be  found  to 
be  "  bad  Turks." 

Yours  truly, 

C.  Lincoln. 
To  Dr.  Payne,  R.N.,  R.N.  Hospital,  Plymouth. 

It  should  be  added  that  two  years  later  (on  the 
6th  of  December,  1875)  ^^  issued  a  Pastoral  recom- 
mending the  Church  of  England  Temperance  Society, 
though  he  was  careful  to  add  that  he  did  so,  among 
other  reasons,  because  the  Society  "  did  not  enforce 
total  abstinence  on  any,  as  a  term  of  association 
with  itself,  and  did  not  venture  to  condemn  as  evil 
any  of  God's  creatures." 

Augustine's  words  are  applied  to  modern  times ;  and  cp.  "Diocesan 
Addresses,"  1S76,  p.  44. 


250     THE  EPISCOPATE— BURNING  QUESTIONS.     [1S73— 

Another  instance  of  the  bishop's  intrepidity  in 
doing  what  he  thought  to  be  right,  regardless  of 
consequences,  may  be  found  in  the  famous  "  Great 
Coates  "  case.  Of  this  case,  also,  Sir  Walter  Philli- 
more  has  kindly  supplied  to  us  a  full  account. 

The  circumstances  which  led  to  the  Bishop's  action  in 
the  case  of  the  living  of  Great  Coates  were  as  follows  : — 

Sir  John  Sutton,  Bart,  had  a  hfe-interest  in  the  advow- 
son  of  the  rectory  of  Great  Coates,  this  advowson  having 
been  put  into  settlement  with  the  family  estates.  Being  a 
Roman  Catholic,  he  was  unable  to  exercise  his  patronage, 
and  he  sold  his  life-interest  to  Mr.  Walsh,  a  clergy- 
man in  priest's  orders,  for  3000/.,  the  living  being  worth 
about  800/.  a  year  and  a  house.  Mr.  Walsh  thus  bought 
an  uncertain  interest.  It  might  be  that  the  incumbent 
would  survive  Sir  John  Sutton  (though  this  was  unlikely), 
in  which  case  he  would  have  paid  his  money  for  nothing. 
He  might  get  one  presentation,  he  might  possibly  get 
more. 

In  fact,  however,  the  Rev.  H.  Howson,  the  incumbent, 
died  on  the  30th  of  May,  1873,  and  Sir  John  Sutton  (though 
a  much  younger  man)  died  only  six  days  after,  on  the  5th 
of  June. 

Mr.  Walsh  having  thus  got  one  presentation,  he  now 
proposed  to  use  it  in  order  to  make  himself  incumbent, 
and  being  unable  to  present  himself,  addressed  (after  a 
form  which  has  become  common  in  England)  a  petition 
to  the  Bishop,  praying  to  be  admitted  to  the  living. 

To  the  Bishop  this  transaction  appeared  to  be  simony. 
He  regarded  it,  in  his  own  language,  "as  immoral,"  and 
requested  Mr.  Walsh  "to  withdraw"  his  petition. 

The  Bishop  fortified  himself  by  one  of  the  common  defi- 
nitions of  simony.  "  Simony  is  the  sale  or  purchase  of 
spiritual  things."  The  temporalities  of  a  benefice  are,  he 
said,  but  accessories  to  the  spiritualities.     "Therefore,"  he 


—  1875-]  GREAT  COATES  CASE.  251 

said,  "  a  clergyman  who  buys  a  living  does,  in  fact,  buy  a 
cure  of  souls,  for  he  cannot  enjoy  the  temporalities  unless 
he  is  first  instituted  by  the  Bishop  to  the  cure."  ^ 

The  extent  to  which  the  rules  against  simony  in  the 
Canon  Law  have  been  accepted  in  and  enforced  by  the 
unwritten  Common  Law  of  England,  and  their  application 
to  the  purchase  of  advowsons  and  next  presentations,  is 
undefined,  and  in  some  points  still  uncertain.  But  a  few 
acts  which  the  Canon  Law  calls  simony  have  been  made 
the  subject  of  express  statutable  prohibition,  some  by  an 
Act  passed  in  the  reign  of  Elizabeth,  the  others  by  an  Act 
known  as  12  Anne,  chap.  12. 

The  Bishop  thought  that  this  latter  Act  fortified  him  in 
refusing  admission  and  institution.  The  scope  which  he 
gave  to  the  Act,  though  larger  than  that  which  was  ulti- 
mately given  by  the  Court,  was  not  so  large  as  that  which 
the  late  Bishop  Phillpotts,  of  Exeter,  had  proposed  to  give 
in  1867.* 

The  Act,  after  a  curious  preamble,  stating  that  some 
clergymen  "  have  procured  preferments  for  themselves  by 
buying  ecclesiastical  livings,  and  others  have  been  thereby 
discouraged,"  proceeds  to  make  it  illegal  for  a  clergyman 
to  buy  for  himself  the  next  avoidance  of  a  living  or  to  take 
and  accept  a  next  avoidance  so  bought. 

The  Bishop  contended,  under  legal  advice,  that  this  is 
what  Mr.  Walsh  had  done.  The  Court  of  Common  Pleas, 
however,  held  ^  that  the  Act  must  be  construed  strictly,  that 
it  prohibited  a  clergyman  from  buying  an  actual  next  pre- 
sentation, and  using  it  to  present  himself;  but  did  not 
make  it  illegal  for  Mr.  Walsh,  who  had  bought  an  uncertain 
interest  in  the  advowson,  which  might  yield  him,  perhaps 

^  "  The  Great   Coates  Case :  A  Statement   by  the  Bishop  of 
Lincoln,"  published  by  James  Williamson,  Lincoln,  1875  ;  P-  4- 
-  Ibid.  p.  5. 
*  Law  Reports,  10  C.P.  518. 


252     THE  EPISCOPATE— BURNING  QUESTIONS.     [1873— 

no  presentation,  or  one  or  more,  from  using  the  one,  though 
it  was  in  fact  the  only  one,  for  himself. 

The  second  point  taken  in  the  case,  though  in  form  a 
mere  technical  one,  and,  indeed,  rather  suggested  to  the 
Bishop  by  his  legal  advisers,  came  round  in  substance  to 
the  same  result.  The  Canon  Law,  no  doubt  with  the 
object  of  discouraging  simony,  forbad  a  man  to  present 
himself  to  a  benefice  ;  and  this  prohibition,  though  possibly 
for  other  grounds,  had  been  accepted  by  the  English  law. 
But  for  a  very  long  time  a  practice  had  prevailed  under 
which  clerical  patrons  who  wished  to  present  themselves 
(and  of  course  there  are  many  clergymen  to  whom  advow- 
sons  have  descended,  or  who  take  them  by  gift)  had  been 
in  the  habit  of  offering  themselves  to  the  Bishop  and 
praying  to  be  admitted  ;  and  certainly  Bishops  had,  as  a 
rule,  accepted  their  tender  as  if  it  had  been  a  presentation. 
But  there  was  authority  for  saying  that  the  Bishop  was  not 
bound  to  accept  such  a  tender  ;  while  it  was  obvious  that 
if  he  was  bound,  such  tender  was  in  effect  a  presentation, 
and  ought  to  be  taken  as  contravening  the  rule  of  the 
Canon  and  Common  Law. 

The  Bishop  urged  that  he  was  not  bound  to  accept  the 
tender,  and  that  the  circumstances  of  the  case  made  it 
right  that  he,  not  being  bound,  should  exercise  his  discre- 
tion by  refusing. 

The  Court  of  Common  Pleas,  however,  thought  that 
long  usage  ought  to  prevail,  and  that  a  Bishop  had  no  more 
choice  after  such  a  tender  than  he  had  after  a  formal  pre- 
sentation, that  there  was  no  substantial  difference  between 
them. 

This  Court  was  the  only  one  which  pronounced  any 
decision  upon  the  real  questions.  But  the  case  was 
brought  into  three  courts.  Mr.  Walsh  was  advised  that  he 
must  sue  the  Bishop  as  well  in  his  character  of  aggrieved 
presentee  by  duplex  querela  in  the  Court  of  Arches  (a 
remedy  hardly  used  since  the  famous  case  of  Mr.  Gorham) 


1 


— 1875.J  SPORTING  CLERGY.  253 

as  in  his  character  of  aggrieved  patron  by  quare  inipedit  in 
the  Court  of  Common  Pleas.  To  these  suits,  by  an  excess 
of  legal  caution,  for  which,  however,  his  legal  advisers  were 
alone  responsible,  was  superadded  a  suit  in  Chancery  to 
restrain  the  Bishop  by  injunction  from  collating  to  the 
living  pending  the  suit.  The  proceedings  in  the  Court  of 
Arches  were  ultimately  dismissed  as  unnecessary  f  but  in 
the  two  other  courts  the  Bishop  had  to  pay  all  the  costs,  as 
well  as  half  a  year's  value  of  the  living  as  damages.  The 
proceedings  went  on  through  1874,  and  the  decision  of  the 
Court  of  Common  Pleas  was  given  on  the  15th  of  April, 
1875.  The  Bishop  did  not  appeal.  He  would  have  had  great 
difficulty  in  instituting  the  clergyman  to  the  benefice;  but 
it  was  discovered  that  in  such  cases  the  duty  devolved  upon 
the  Archbishop,  who  instituted  through  his  Vicar-General, 

There  was  yet  another  burning  question  which 
within  a  limited  area  raised  a  flame  as  great  as  any 
we  have  yet  referred  to.  Lincolnshire  is  essentially 
a  "sporting"  county,  and  in  old  times  there  was 
probably  no  county  in  which  so  many  specimens 
could  be  found  of  what  is  called  "  the  sporting 
parson."  These  clergymen  were  often  very  popular, 
and  often  also  very  useful,  affecting  for  good  a  class 
of  people  whom  other  types  of  clergy  could  not 
reach.  It  is  a  great  mistake  to  suppose  that  they 
always  neglected  their  proper  duties.  On  the  con- 
trary, they  often  performed  those  duties  exceedingly 
well  and  effectively  according  to  the  standard  which 
they  took.  They  promoted  a  healthy,  manly  tone, 
which  sometimes  appears  to  be  rather  lacking  in  men 
of  a  more  spiritual  type.     They  were  thoroughly  in 

\  Law  Reports,  4  Adm.  and  Eccl.  p.  242. 


254      THE  EPISCOPATE— BURNING  QUESTIONS.    [1873— 

touch  with  the  laity,  that  is,  with  the  lay  men  as  well 
as  the  lay  women.  Undoubtedly  they  were  popular, 
and  perhaps  the  prevalence  of  Methodism  in  Lin- 
colnshire, while  on  the  one  hand  it  intensified  the 
disapproval  of  their  proceedings,  on  the  other  hand 
emphasized  the  approval  of  them.  To  condemn  old 
English  sports  was  Methodistical,  to  encourage  them 
was  sound  Churchmanship.  It  was,  therefore,  a  new 
departure  for  one  who  was  regarded  as  a  distinctly 
High  Churchman  to  set  his  face  against  sport.  But 
we  should  clearly  distinguish  between  two  separate 
things  which  in  this  matter  were  rather  apt  to  be  con- 
founded. Sport,  such  as  fox-hunting,  shooting,  &c., 
was  one  thing  ;  training  horses  for  racing  purposes, 
with  all  the  concomitant  evils  of  gambling,  &c., 
was  quite  another. 

The  case  was  this.  Tidings  came  to  Bishop 
Wordsworth's  ears  that  a  beneficed  clergyman  in  his 
diocese  was  in  the  habit  of  breeding  and  training 
racehorses,  and  entering  them  for  races  under  an 
assumed  name.  The  bishop  wrote  courteously  but 
very  firmly  to  the  clergyman  in  question,  remon- 
strating with  him  on  the  subject,  and  intimating  his 
decided  opinion  that  such  a  course  was  inconsistent 
with  the  position  of  a  parish  priest.  A  corre- 
spondence ensued,  the  upshot  of  which  was  that  the 
clergyman,  who  showed  great  courtesy  and  good 
sense  in  the  whole  matter,  tendered  in  dignified 
terms  his  resignation  of  his  benefices,  for  the  sake 
of  the  peace  of  the  Church,  while  at  the  same  time 


\ 


—  1S75.]  RITUAL  QUESTION.  255 

he  utterly  denied  the  Bishop's  power  to  force  him 
either  to  resign  his  Hvings  or  abandon  his  favourite 
amusement. 

One  question  which  might  have  been  expected  of 
all  others  to  prove  a  burning  question,  but,  as  a 
matter  of  fact,  did  not,  was  the  question  of  Ritual. 
During  the  whole  episcopate  of  Bishop  Wordsworth 
there  was  not  one  single  prosecution  for  ritual  in  his 
diocese.  And  yet  his  views  on  this  subject  were  not 
those  of  many  of  his  clergy.  It  should  never  be 
forgotten  that  though  he  was  always,  and  rightly, 
regarded  as  a  distinct  High  Churchman,  yet  the 
conservative  element  and  love  of  simplicity  were 
also  very  markedly  developed  in  him.  It  is  only 
necessary  to  refer  to  his  diocesan  addresses  for 
a  proof  of  this.  But  in  those  same  addresses  he 
also  gave  some  significant  hints  that  he  meant 
to  be  fair  all  round,  and  that  if  he  was  to  correct 
excesses  he  would  also  take  good  care  to  cor- 
rect defects.  Having  impressed  upon  one  side  that 
"  the  course  for  true  Catholics  is  to  cease  from 
strife,"  he  turns  to  the  other  side : — 

/  But  in  speaking  thus,  let  me  not  omit  to  press  upon 
you  earnestly  the  duty  of  mutual  forbearance.  Before  you 
pronounce  judgment  upon  a  brother  for  going  beyond  the 
law,  or  what  you  suppose  to  be  the  law  in  ritual  matters, 

I  examine  carefully  whether  you  yourself  are  not  to  blame 
for  falling  short  of  the  lazu.  It  is  an  unseemly  thing  to  be 
exasperated  against  those  who  may  be  chargeable  with  some 
excesses  in  ceremonial,  and  yet  to  have  no  feeling  of  honest 
indignation  against  ourselves,  who,  perhaps,  may  be  breaking 


256     THE  EPISCOPATE— BURNING  QUESTIONS.    [1873— 

the  plain  letter  of  the  law  in  important  respects  ;  who, 
perhaps,  not  only  do  not  open  our  churches  for  daily- 
prayer,  but  keep  them  shut  on  holy  days — days  appointed 
by  the  Church,  perhaps  even  on  Ascension  Day  ;  and  who 
are  content  with  infrequent  Communions,  damp  churches 
and  high  square  pews,  and  cold,  dreary,  and  heartless 
services.  If  we  are  to  be  angry  at  all,  let  us  not  discharge 
the  vials  of  our  wrath  on  the  head  of  zeal,  and  have  none 
left  for  our  lukewarmness,  coldness,  slovenliness,  and  un- 
faithfulness. In  a  word,  let  us  all  agree  in  a  hearty 
resolve  to  obey  the  law,  and  to  live  in  peace  and  love  one 
with  another. 

Again,  he  taught  all  his  clergy  to  be  loyal  to  him, 
by  the  most  indisputable  proofs  which  he  showed 
that  he  meant  to  be  loyal  to  them.  This  was  con- 
spicuously shown  by  his  attitude  in  the  House  of 
Lords  when  the  Public  Worship  Regulation  Bill 
was  being  hurried  through  that  august  assembly  in 
1874.  The  nation  was  passing  through  one  of  those 
hot  fits  by  which  it  seems  to  be  periodically  attacked. 
The  "  No  Popery  "  cry  of  the  last  century  was  vir- 
tually revived,  and  one  of  those  who  were  carried 
away  by  it  was  the  Premier  of  the  day,  Mr.  D'Israeli. 
The  Primate  (Dr.  Tait),  with  all  the  force  of  a  sin- 
gularly strong  character,  and  with  much  more  sym- 
pathy for  the  supposed  sufferings  of  the  laity  than 
for  the  traditions  of  Church  order,  and  the  feelings 
of  an  increasing  body  of  the  clergy,  was  for  pressing 
on  the  Bill.^ 

'  Bishop  Wilberforce  had  recently  been  removed  by  the  acci- 
dent on  the  Sussex  Downs,  which  sent  such  a  thrill  of  sorrow 


—  1 37 5 .]     P UBLIC  WORSHIP  REG ULA  TION  ACT  257 

The  Bishop  of  Lincoln  stood  forth  as  the  courageous 
champion  of  the  clergy.^  He  pleaded  earnestly  for 
an  opportunity  being  given  for  the  Church  to  discuss 
the  measure  in  her  own  proper  assembly.  He  cited 
the  instance  of  the  collisions  which  had  occurred 
between  the  bishops  and  the  clergy  at  the  beginning 
of  the  eighteenth  century.  He  pointed  out  with 
great  force  that  to  hurry  this  Bill  through  Parliament 
against  the  wishes  of  the  clergy,  through  dread  of 
Rome,  was  really  the  most  effectual  way  of  playing 
into  the  hands  of  Rome,  whose  strongest  argument 
against  the  English  Church  had  always  been  that 
she  was  a  creation,  and  continued  to  be  the  creature 
of  the  State.  He  showed  how  it  would  impair  the 
bishop's  own  power  if  he  were  morally  compelled  to 
enforce  the  law  at  the  instance  of  three  parishioners, 
Churchmen  or  otherwise. 

The  following  MS.,  found  among  Bishop  Words- 
worth's papers,  and  headed  by  him,  "  P.W.R.A., 
1874,"  seems  worth  reproducing.  It  is  all  in  his 
own  handwriting  : — 

On  Tuesday,  Jan.  13,  1874,  a  meeting  of  bishops  was 
held  at  Lambeth  Palace,  when  it  was  agreed  that  a  Bill 
should  be  prepared  for  the  purpose  of  amending  the  con- 
stitution and   procedure   of  ecclesiastical   courts,    and   of 

through  the  Church  in  the  summer  of  1873.  Had  he  been  alive, 
it  was  almost  universally  felt  such  a  measure  would  have  been 
impossible. 

^  Bishop  Mackarness  voted,  we  believe,  more  directly  against 
the  Bill  than  any  other  Bishop. 

S 


258      THE  EPISCOPATE— BURNING  QUESTIONS.  [1873— 

correcting  irregularities  in  the  performance  of  the  ritual  of 
public  worship,  whether  by  excess  or  defect. 

On  the  motion  of  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln,  supported  by 
the  Bishop  of  Peterborough  and  others,  it  was  agreed  that 
a  draft  of  an  episcopal  allocution  to  prepare  the  clergy 
and  laity  for  such  legislation  should  be  prepared,  and  sub- 
mitted to  the  bishops  for  their  consideration. 

A  draft  was  prepared  accordingly  by  the  Bishop  of 
Lincoln,  and  sent  to  most  of  the  bishops.  Copies  of  the 
draft  and  their  letters  are  in  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln's  papers. 

Two  articles  appeared  in  the  Times  newspaper  (I  do  not 
remember  the  exact  dates),  purporting  to  give  the  heads  of 
the  proposed  Episcopal  Bill — much  to  the  astonishment  of 
the  great  majority  of  the  bishops,  who  had  never  seen  any 
sketch  of  a  bill,  nor  knew  what  any  of  its  provisions  were 
intended  to  be.  This  put  an  end  to  the  design  for  an 
allocution. 

On  Friday,  April  17th,  a  meeting  of  bishops  was  held  at 
the  Bounty  Board,  when  the  two  archbishops  produced  the 
draft  of  a  bill,  prepared  by  Mr.  Brunei,  Chancellor  of  the 
Diocese  of  Ely,  under  their  direction. 

This  draft  of  a  bill  was  considered  at  this  one  meeting, 
at  which  only  a  portion  of  the  bishops  were  present,  and  at 
this  meeting  only. 

At  the  close  of  it  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln  asked  on  what 
day  would  be  the  second  reading  of  the  bill  ? 

The  answer  given  by  the  two  archbishops,  the  Bishop  of 
London  being  present,  and  a  few  other  bishops,  was  that  it 
would  be  on  the  Tuesday  following,  viz.  the  28th  of  April. 

After  the  meeting,  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln  wrote  a  private 
letter  to  the  Archbishop  with  an  earnest  and  respectful 
remonstrance  against  this  arrangement,  and  reminding  his 
Grace  that  the  28th  of  April  was  the  day  fixed  for  the 
meeting  of  Convocation,  and  that  if  the  bill  came  before 
Parliament  without  any  reference  to  Convocation,  a  serious 
misunderstanding,  and  perhaps  an    open  rupture,   would 


—  1 87 5 .]     P UBLIC  WORSHIP  REG ULA TION  ACT.  259 

ensue  between  the  bishops  and  the  Convocation  and  the 
clergy  generally. 

No  answer  to  this  letter  was  received. 
On  the  following  Monday  the  Archbishop  made  a  state- 
ment concerning  the  proposed  bill  in  the  House  of  Lords. 

The  expostulation  of  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln  on  that 
occasion  is  contained  in  his  pamphlet  entitled  "Senates  and 
Synods." 

Also  his  further  remonstrance  in  the  House  of  Lords  on 
a  subsequent  occasion,  when  the  bill  went  into  Committee 
on  Thursday,  June  4. 

The  sudden  and  unexpected  apostrophe  of  the  arch- 
bishop to  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln  in  the  Upper  House  of 
Convocation  on  Thursday,  July  9th  (if  I  remember  rightly), 
and  the  bishop's  reply,  may  be  seen  reported  in  the 
"  Chronicle  of  Convocation." 

On  Tuesday,  August  4th,  the  bill,  having  passed  the 
Commons,  came  back  to  the  Lords,  with  the  amendments 
of  the  Commons  to  be  considered,  especially  the  amend- 
ment which  enabled  the  archbishop  to  set  aside  the 
exercise  of  the  discretion  of  the  bishop  of  a  diocese  in 
staying  proceedings. 

The  Bishop  of  Lincoln  (who  travelled  from  Lincoln  to 
London)  came  to  the  House  of  Lords  at  about  twenty 
minutes  before  five — that  is,  about  twenty  minutes  before 
the  beginning  of  the  debate — and  found  in  the  Bishops' 
Room  there,  the  two  archbishops,  and  the  Bishops  of  Win- 
chester, Rochester,  Lichfield,  Oxford,  Salisbury,  Chichester, 
Carlisle,  and  Ely. 

The  archbishops  had  received  a  message  from  the  Prime 
Minister,  Mr.  D'Israeli,  to  the  effect  that  if  the  amendment 
of  the  Commons  were  rejected,  the  bill  would  be  imperilled 
and  probably  lost. 

A  message  also  had  come  to  them  from  Mr.  Gladstone 
(through  the  Bishop  of  Ely),  to  the  effect  that  if  the 
amendment  were  not  rejected,  he  (Mr.  Gladstone)  should 

S  2 


26o     THE  EPISCOPATE— BURNING  QUESTIONS.    [1873— 

feel  relieved  from  all  engagements  to  support  the  Esta- 
blished Church. 

The  bishops  deemed  it  best  to  vote  according  to  their 
consciences,  and  all  present  (eight  bishops)  except  one, 
who  did  not  vote  at  all,  voted  against  the  amendment. 

The  amendment  was  rejected  by  a  majority  of  twelve. 
The  Bishop  of  Lincoln  spoke  against  it. 

On  the  followingday  it  was  resolved,  nemine  contradicente, 
by  the  Commons  (Mr.  DTsraeli  and  Mr.  Gladstone  joining- 
together),  that  they  would  not  insist  on  the  amendment, 
and  thus  the  legitimate  exercise  of  the  discretion  of  the 
bishops  was  preserved,  and  frivolous  litigation  stayed.  Pro 
Ecclesid  Dei. 

But  it  is  needless  to  follow  further  the  course  of 
his  remarks  either  in  the  House  of  Lords,  in  the 
spring  and  summer  of  1874,  or  in  Convocation. 
It  is  enough  for  the  point  we  are  aiming  at  to  show 
how  those  clergy  in  his  diocese  who  disagreed  with 
him  as  to  the  more  or  less  of  ritual,  yet  learned  to 
look  upon  him  as  their  friend,  and  to  yield  to  his 
guidance.  This  was  shown  about  two  and  a  half 
years  later,  when  a  resolution  to  be  proposed  at  the 
Newark  and  Southwell  Branch  of  the  English 
Church  Union  was  submitted  to  the  Bishop  by 
the  chairman  (Canon  Hole,  now  Dean  of  Rochester) 
for  his  opinion.  "  By  that  opinion,"  adds  Canon 
Hole,  "  I  shall  not  only  be  guided,  but  shall 
be  able  to  influence  many  others."  The  resolution 
was:  "In  consequence  of  recent  action  taken  by 
the  court  created  under  the  Public  Worship  Regu- 
lation Act,  this  meeting  declares  that  in  its  judg- 
ment any  sentence  of  suspension  or  inhibition  pro- 


— iS7S.]  LETTER  OF  CANON  HOLE.  261 

nounced  by  any  court  sitting  under  the  aforesaid 
Act  is  spiritually  null  and  void,  and  that  should 
any  priest  feel  it  to  be  his  duty  to  continue  to  dis- 
charge his  spiritual  functions  notwithstanding  such 
sentence,  he  is  hereby  assured  of  our  sympathy,  and 
of  such  support  and  assistance  as  the  circumstances 
of  the  case  might  demand."  This  resolution  has 
been  quoted  in  full  because  it  suggests  just  what 
actually  did  take  place  in  other  dioceses,  and  what 
might  have  taken  place  in  the  diocese  of  Lincoln.  The 
bishop  entered  fully  into  the  matter,  and  gave  no 
less  than  fourteen  reasons  why  he  could  certainly  not 
agree  with  the  resolution.  The  reply  of  Canon 
Hole  bears  so  directly  upon  the  relationship  between 
the  bishop  and  his  clergy  that  it  must  be  given  in 
full :— 

Cciunton  Manor,  Newark, 
Jan.  II,  1877. 
My  dear  Lokd  Bishop, — I  feel  most  thankful  to  your 
lordship  for  the  letter  which  I  have  received  this  morning, 
and  I  am  convinced  that  the  publication  of  it,  which  you 
kindly  permit,  will  not  only  establish,  strengthen,  settle 
many  a  doubtful  mind,  but  will  promote  in  this  diocese, 
and  wherever  it  is  read,  the  spirit  of  obedience,  loyalty,  and 
peace. 

Believe  me  to  remain,  with  affectionate  respect, 

Your  lordship's  grateful  and  faithful  servant, 

S.  Reynolds  Hole. 

So  far  as  the  Diocese  of  Lincoln,  at  any  rate,  was 
concerned,  the  prophecy  in  this  letter  was  literally 
fulfilled.     It  should  be  added  that  though  the  bishop 


262     THE  EPISCOPATE— BURNING  QUESTIONS.    [1873— 

had  decided  opinions  of  his  own  on  all  the  vexed 
questions  of  ritual,  he  pleaded  for  a  large  toleration 
of  different  views  in  others,  and  granted  that  tolera- 
tion so  far  as  his  jurisdiction  extended. 

The  affection  and  confidence  with  which  Canon 
Hole  regarded  him  will  be  seen  from  the  following 
letter.  The  fact  that  Canon  Hole,  besides  being 
one  of  the  most  effective  of  living  preachers,  is  an 
enthusiastic  gardener,  his  **  Book  upon  Roses  "  being 
the  standard  authority  upon  the  subject,  may  throw 
light  upon  the  first  sentence  : — 

Caunton  Matior,  Nezvark^ 
May  24,  1887. 

Dear  Canon  Overton, — Not  long  before  he  passed 
from  faith  to  fruition,  our  beloved  father  in  God  sent  to 
me,  with  other  kindly  words,  the  following  :  "  No  flower- 
bed is  so  beautiful  as  the  bed  of  sickness  and  death,  where 
our  Lord  is  the  Gardener,  as  He  appeared  to  Mary  Magda- 
lene, and  where  the  fruits  are  the  blessed  produce  of  God's 
Holy  Spirit,  the  peaceable  fruits  of  righteousness  and  re- 
pentance, of  which  the  full  beauty  can  only  be  seen  in 
Paradise." 

I  send  you  a  few  of  his  letters,  containing  remarks,  terse 
and  truthful,  upon  important  topics.  These,  I  know,  you 
will  return,  because  you  feel,  as  I  do,  that  every  word 
which  came  from  that  wise  head,  that  affectionate  heart, 
that  "  vanished  hand,"  is  precious  to  the  possessor — to 
them  especially  who  owe,  as  I  do,  more  than  words  can 
tell,  to  his  instruction,  counsel,  and  sympathy. 

"  I  was  never  in  his  presence,"  it  was  said  to  me  by  one 
of  his  brother  bishops,  "  without  feeling  myself  the  better 
for  it,"  and  this  influence  was  recognized  by  all  who  knew 
him. 


—1875.]    PUBLIC  WORSHIP  REGULATION  ACT.  263 

"  When  one  that  holds  communion  with  the  skies, 
Has  fill'd  his  urn,  where  those  pure  waters  rise. 
And  once  more  mingles  with  us  meaner  things, 
It  is  as  though  an  angel  shook  his  wings  ; 
Immortal  fragrance  fills  the  circuit  wide, 
And  tells  us  whence  these  treasures  are  supplied." 

Believe  me  to  be,  dear  Canon  Overton, 
Sincerely  yours, 

S.  Reynolds  Hole. 

At  the  anniversary  of  the  English  Church  Union 
on  June  i6th,  when  Dr.  Pusey  and  Dr.  Liddon  were 
present,  the  latter,  in  speaking  of  the  recent  conduct 
of  the  bishops  with  regard  to  the  P.W.R.  Bill, 
exclaimed, — 

"  Sir,  let  us  be  just ;  let  us  do  honour  to  the  noble 
Bishop  of  Lincoln  (loud  cheers),  who  certainly  felt  the 
heart  of  an  apostle  beating  within  him — let  us  be  just ;  but 
it  must  remain  a  matter  of  utter  astonishment  that  the 
whole  of  the  English  Episcopate  did  -not  start  to  their 
feet  and  say  to  the  Primate,  '  We  cannot  have  this.'  " 

The  Bishop  of  Lincoln's  speech  on  the  Bill  going 
into  Committee  will  be  found,  corrected  by  himself, 
in  the  Guardian,  June  loth,  1874. 

How  little  he  coveted  popularity  was,  however, 
shown  by  the  fact  that  about  this  time  he  was  to 
read  a  paper  (on  Church  Patronage)  at  the  Brighton 
Church  Congress  ;  but  hearing  from  a  correspondent 
that  "  he  was  to  receive  an  ovation,"  he  withdrew 
from  the  Congress,  and  sent  his  paper  to  be  read  by 
a  friend,  Mr.  Walter  Phillimore,  which  was  accord- 
ingly done. 


264     THE  EPISCOPATE— BURNING  QUESTIONS.    [1873— 

The  two  following  letters  written  by  the  Bishop  to 
Archdeacon  Denison  and  Mr.  Berdmore  Compton, 
at  this  exciting  time,  will  be  read  with  interest : — 

Riseholme,  Lincoln, 

May  30,  1874. 

My  dear  Archdeacon, — In  reply  to  your  letter  re- 
ceived this  morning,  I  beg  to  say  that  while  I  am  unable 
to  add  my  signature  to  the  declaration  forwarded  by  you, 
or  to  any  other  similar  document  yet  I  have  no  hesitation 
in  expressing  an  opinion  that,  though  legislation  is  neces- 
sary for  the  amendment  of  the  constitution  and  modes  of 
procedure  of  our  Ecclesiastical  Courts  ;  and  although  the 
evils  and  abuses  now  prevailing  in  some  of  our  churches  in 
the  ritual  of  public  worship,  whether  by  excess  or  defect, 
urgently  require  correction,  yet  previously  to  such  legisla- 
tion the  Church  of  England  ought  to  be  enabled  to  exer- 
cise that  authority  which  belongs  to  all  national  Churches 
and  to  define  and  declare  in  her  Provincial  Synods  what 
her  own  judgment  is  concerning  such  rubrics  as  are  now 
regarded  by  many  as  ambiguous,  and  which  have  been  in- 
terpreted in  diverse  senses  by  Ecclesiastical  Courts,  and 
that  she  ought  to  be  authorized  to  revise  such  rubrics  as  in 
her  opinion  may  require  revision,  for  the  avoidance  of 
strife  and  for  the  maintenance  of  peace  in  her  communion. 
I  am,  my  dear  Archdeacon, 

Yours  faithfully, 

C.  Lincoln. 

The  Venerable  Archdeacon  of  Taunton. 

R  iseholnie,  L  in  coin , 

Jnne  12,  1874. 
My  dear   Sir, — In   reply  to  your  letter  received  this 
morning,  I   beg  to  state  my  general  concurrence  in  the 
principles  and  terms  of  the  printed  declaration  forwarded 
by  you. 


— I87S.J  LETTER  ON  THE  SUBJECT.  265 

I  have  already  declared  my  persuasion  that  to  deal  with 
the  Ritual  and  Worship  of  the  Church  of  England,  with- 
out consulting  the  Church  herself  in  her  Synods,  not 
merely  by  a  Bill  in  Parh'ament,  which  contains  persons 
not  only  not  in  communion  with  the  Church,  but  who 
openly  avow  hostihty  to  her  doctrine  and  discipline,  is  to 
justify  the  worst  taunts  of  her  bitterest  enemies,  the 
Romanists,  who  allege  that  the  Church  of  England  is  not 
of  divine  institution,  and  has  no  spiritual  mission  or  fixed 
principles,  but  is  only  a  creature  of  the  State,  and  dependent 
for  her  faith  and  worship  on  the  fluctuations  of  Parliamen- 
tary majorities,  and  consequently  has  no  claim  on  the 
allegiance  of  those  who  believe  that  Christianity  is  a 
divine  revelation,  and  that  the  Founder  and  Ruler  of  the 
Church  is  Christ. 

I  do  not  doubt  that  the  present  Bill  is  designed  by  its 
promoters  to  support  the  cause  of  the  English  Reforma- 
tion and  to  check  the  growth  of  Romanism  among  us  ; 
and  as  far  as  it  does  this,  and  amends  the  constitution  and 
procedure  of  our  Ecclesiastical  Courts,  I  wish  it  success. 
But  a  long  and  careful  study  of  the  controversy  with  Rome 
convinces  me  that,  if  this  measure  is  carried  on  in  the 
manner  in  which  it  is  now  being  pressed  through  Parlia- 
ment, it  will  do  more  to  promote  secessions  from  the 
Church  of  England  to  Romanism,  and  to  afford  a  triumph 
to  Rome,  and  to  weaken  the  cause  of  the  English  Refor- 
mation, and  to  produce  discord  and  disruption  in  the 
Church  of  England,  than  all  the  excesses  and  extrava- 
gances of  Ritualism,  which  I  most  deeply  deplore. 
I  am,  my  dear  Sir, 

Yours  faithfully, 

C.  Lincoln. 

The  Rev.  Berdmore  Compton. 

Before  quitting  the  question  of  Ritual  it  may  be 
mentioned     that    after  the    Purchas    judgment    of 


266       THE  EPISCOPATE— BURNING  QUESTIONS.     [1880. 

Feb.  23,  1871,  the  Bishop  adopted  the  practice  of 
wearing  a  cope  at  the  celebration  of  the  Holy  Com- 
munion in  the  Cathedral  on  high  festivals.  Once 
or  twice  he  wore  the  large  scarlet  robe  lined  with 
white  fur  which  his  father  had  worn  at  Cambridge 
as  Vice-Chancellor.  Afterwards  Bishop  Trollope 
gave  him  a  beautiful  crimson  cope,  now  used  by  the 
present  Bishop  of  Lincoln.  It  was  Dr.  Words- 
worth's own  wish  to  have  the  Four  Evanofelists  at 
the  four  corners.  Canon  Beridge  gave  the  "  morse  " 
anonymously.  Then  the  Rev.  F.  W.  Sutton  gave 
him  a  second  and  simpler  cope  (white  and  gold), 
and  an  exquisite  little  black  and  ivory  pastoral  staff. 
Another  instance  of  Bishop  Wordsworth's  con- 
sistency and  courage  occurred  in  1880.  At  the  time 
of  his  entrance  upon  the  episcopate  one  of  the  mat- 
ters affecting  the  Church  which  was  being  agitated 
in  Parliament  was  "  the  right  of  burial  in  church- 
yards by  other  ministers  and  with  other  services  than 
those  of  the  Church  of  England."  The  Bishop 
lifted  up  his  testimony  against  the  proposal  in  his 
first  charge,  and  never  swerved  from  the  sentiments 
which  he  then  expressed.  In  1876  he  wrote  to 
his  dauo^hter  : — 

House  of  Lords,  May  gih,  1876. 
My  dear  E., — We  have  had  a  long  Episcopal  Session 
to-day  concerning  the  Burials  Bill,  and  though  the  danger 
may  be  averted  for  a  year  or  so,  there  seems  little  reason 
to  hope  for  any  vigorous  permanent  resistance  to  the  tide 
which  is  setting  in  very  strongly  against  the  Church  of 
England  as  the  Church  of  the  nation. 


i88o.]  THE  BURIALS  BILL.  267 

He  rarely  omitted  to  notice  it  in  any  of  his 
pastoral  addresses,  and  made  it  the  special  subject 
of  his  inaugural  address  to  the  Lincoln  Diocesan 
Conference  in  1877.  He  felt  so  strongly  on  the 
point  that  on  one  public  occasion  he  declared 
distinctly  that  "if  it  were  a  question  between 
surrendering  our  churchyards  and  churches ''  (he 
always  contended  that  if  the  former  were  conceded 
the  latter  must  follow)  "to  be  shared  as  national 
property  by  ministers  of  different  forms  of  belief  or 
unbelief,  or  else  to  be  disestablished  and  disendowed, 
he  should  unhesitatingly  prefer  the  latter  alterna- 
tive." He  thankfully  hailed  what  appeared  to  be  a 
peaceful  solution  of  the  question  in  Mr.  Marten's 
Act  of  1878.  But,  as  is  well  known,  the  question 
was  not  settled,  and  in  1880  the  Burials  Law 
Amendment  Act  was  passed,  with  little  or  no  oppo- 
sition from  the  bishops  in  the  House  of  Lords.  On 
this  occasion  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln  fought,  almost 
alone,  the  battle  of  the  vast  majority  of  the  clergy. 
His  own  account  of  his  action  to  the  clergy  and 
Church  officers  of  his  diocese  is  very  brief  and 
modest.  "I  felt  it  my  duty  to  oppose  that  measure 
because  it  seemed  to  be  unnecessary,  and  to  tend  to 
a  desecration  of  holy  things,  and  to  open  a  door  to 
other  demands  for  further  concession  on  the  part  of 
the  Church."  His  unflinching  courage  and  consistency 
were  so  admired  that  he  was  greeted  with  a  ringing 
cheer,  a  most  unusual  thing,  as  he  walked  through  the 
lobby  of  the   House  of  Lords.     The  present  Arch- 


268       THE  EPISCOPATE— BURNING  QUESTIONS.     [1880. 

bishop  of  Canterbury  notes  "  the  great  silence  and 
impression  of  the  Lords  when  he  spoke  on  the 
unpopular  side  about  the  Burials  Bill.  Several 
have  said  to  me,  and  one  quite  lately,  how  greatly 
they  were  struck  by  his  conviction  and  his  courage." 
He  was  compared  by  many  to  Abdiel, 

"  Faithful  found 
Among  the  faithless,  faithful  only  he." 

But  the  models  which  he  set  before  him  were  rather 
men  of  like  passions  with  himself.      It  was  said,  as  we 
have  seen,  on  one  occasion,  that  he  "  looked  like  one 
of  the  ancient  Fathers  of  the  Church,"  and  it  was  to 
the  conduct  of  some  of  these  ancient  Fathers  that  he 
recurred  when  he  thought  of  the  attitude  which  the 
Church  and  her  prelates  should  take  in  relation  to 
this  burials  question.      In   speaking   of  it   he   more 
than  once  referred  to  the  noble  action  of  S.  Ambrose 
when  he  was  required  by  the  Emperor  Valentinian 
to  give  up  some  of  the  churches  at  Milan  for  the  use 
of  the   Arians.     He  loved  frequently  to   recall  the 
language  which  was  used  by  that  ancient  Father,  and 
which  no  man,  living  or  dead,  could  have  used  with 
greater  sincerity  and  a  more  steady  determination  to 
act  up  to  it,  than  Bishop  Wordsworth  himself.     "If 
you  want  my  property,  seize  it  ;  if  you  wish  for  my 
body,  here  it  is  ;  if  you  desire  to  cast  me  into  prison, 
or  to  carry  me  to  death,  I  will  follow  you."     Bishop 
Wordsworth  was,  if  any  man  was,  of  the  stuff  that 
martyrs  are  made  of.     "  My  dear  friend,"  he  said  to 


I 


1880.]  THE  BURIALS  BILL.  269 

the  present  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  when  they 
were  talking  of  the  gloomy  condition  of  the  Church 
in  1870,  "  you  have  this  great  comfort  before  you, 
that  probably  you  may  be  enabled  to  live  to  be  a 
martyr."  "  And,"  added  the  archbishop,  when 
repeating  the  story,  "  I  believe  that  is  the  thing  that 
he  would  himself  have  enjoyed  more  than  anything 
else."  In  connection  with  this  burial  question  the 
bishop  loved,  too,  to  think  of  S.  Hilary  and  S. 
Athanasius,  who,  "  at  the  cost  of  banishment, 
persecutions,  and  indignities,  maintained  the  true 
faith,  whole  and  undefiled,  and  transmitted  it  to 
future  generations."  It  was  frequently  said  of  him, 
sometimes  admiringly,  sometimes  half  scornfully,  as 
if  it  implied  that  he  was  out  of  sympathy  with 
modern  life,  that  he  should  have  been  one  of  the 
early  Christians  ;  and,  as  far  as  the  courage  which 
would  resist  unto  blood  went,  he  might  have  been. 
How  thoroughly  his  conduct  on  the  occasion  of  the 
Burials  Bill  was  appreciated  by  the  clergy  of  his 
diocese  may  be  inferred  from  the  fact  that  he  re- 
ceived an  address  signed  by  more  than  600  of  their 
number,  expressing  approval  of  the  course  he  took. 
He  also  received  a  similar  address  from  more  than 
1400  clergy  in  other  dioceses. 

The  following  letter  from   Bishop  Trollope  may 
fitly  be  inserted  here  : — 

Leasingham,  S leaf ord,  January  2$th,  1881. 
My  dear  Lord  Bishop  and  Brother, — Lately  I  had 
the  pleasure  of  presenting  an  Address  to  you  on  the  part 


270       THE  EPISCOPATE— BURNING  QUESTIONS.     [1880. 

of  a  great  number  of  the  Clergy  of  your  own  and  other 
dioceses,  expressive  of  their  deep  thankfulness  to  you  for 
the  valuable  services  you  have  rendered  to  the  Church  of 
England.  Some  of  these,  however,  not  content  with  this 
expression  of  their  feelings,  desired  to  do  more,  by  assist- 
ing your  efforts  in  behalf  of  the  foundation  of  the  See  of 
Southwell,  for  the  relief  of  your  own  diocese,  and  that  of 
Lichfield,  which  they  conceived  would  constitute  the  most 
acceptable  additional  offering  that  could  be  presented  to 
you.  The  result  has  been  the  collection  of  a  sum  of  273/., 
consisting  of  very  many  small  sums  towards  that  object. 
This,  as  President  of  the  Committee,  I  have  now  the 
gratification  of  placing  at  your  disposition.  Trusting  that 
this  supplementary  addition  to  the  Address  will  prove 
acceptable  to  you,  as  a  further  proof  of  the  high  regard  in 
which  you  are  held  by  the  Clergy  of  the  Church  of 
England  at  large,  as  well  as  of  your  own  diocese, 
I  am,  with  the  highest  respect. 

Your  affectionate  brother, 

E.  Nottingham. 

A  minor  instance  of  his  outspokenness  in  con- 
nection with  this  burials  question  was  displayed  at 
a  luncheon  after  the  reopening  of  the  parish  church 
at  Blankney.  Blankney  is  the  seat  of  the  Right 
Hon.  Henry  Chaplin,  and,  therefore,  of  course,  a 
stronghold  of  Conservatism.  In  the  presence  of 
Mr.  Chaplin,  Viscount  Folkestone,  and  other  strong 
Conservatives, — 

"  There  is,"  he  said,  "  I  fear,  a  species  of  Conservatism 
which  deals  with  the  Church  as  if  it  were  a  department  of 
the  State,  and  not  a  divine  institution,  and  which  regards 
the  clergy,  not  as  having  a  divine  commission,  but  as  little 
better — forgive  the  expression — than  policemen  in  black 


i88o.]  BLANKNEY—EPWORTH.  271 

clothes.  There  is  also,  I  fear,  a  kind  of  Conservatism  which 
is  very  friendly  to  its  enemies,  but  not  quite  so  cordial  to 
its  friends,  and  which  thinks  that  it  may  conciliate  the 
former  without  alienating  the  latter,  and  that  it  is  secure  of 
the  votes  of  the  clergy  ;  and  that  its  best  policy,  therefore, 
is  to  patronize  their  opponents." 

And  then  he  goes  on  to  instance  the  Conservatives' 
conduct  in  the  matter  of  the  Burials  Bill,  making, 
however,  an  honourable  exception  (among  others) 
of  "  the  noble  Earl,  the  leader  of  the  Conservative 
party,"  who  was  always  most  cordial  in  encouraging 
those  who  opposed  that  measure.  When  the 
Primate  and  others  referred  to  Bishop  Words- 
worth's views  as  out  of  date,  the  Earl  of  Beaconsfield 
remarked  that  those  who  lived  to  see  would  find  that 
the  Bishop  was  right. 

The  Bishop  felt  so  strongly  on  the  point  that  he 
refused  to  consecrate  any  more  cemeteries,  but 
authorized  "  any  parish  priest  of  the  diocese  to  con- 
secrate any  grave  severally  "  by  the  use  of  a  form  of 
prayer  which  he  drew  up. 

One  little  episode  may  be  mentioned  in  connec- 
tion with  this  burials  question,  to  which  the  Bishop 
often  afterwards  referred  with  great  satisfaction. 
An  Act  of  Parliament  (36  and  2)1  Victoria)  enabled 
persons  "  to  secure  burial-places,  not  exceeding  one 
acre,  in  trust  for  the  performance  of  such  services  by 
such  ministers  as  they  themselves  prefer."  The 
Act  was  of  course  passed  in  the  interests  of  those 
who  did  not  belong  to  the  Church  of  England.     But 


2  72       THE  EPISCOPATE— BURNING  QUESTIONS.     [1880. 

"  the  door  which  was  wide  enough  to  admit  the 
Trojan  was  wide  enough  also  to  admit  the  Rutulian  ;" 
and  the  Churchmen  of  Epworth  made  the  same  use 
of  this  law  as  the  Churchmen  of  the  Commonwealth 
made  of  the  law  respecting  lecturers.  They  sent  a 
petition  largely  signed  to  the  bishop,  asking  him  to 
consecrate  a  burial-ground  at  Epworth  according  to 
the  provisions  of  the  aforesaid  Act  ;  the  ground  was 
vested  in  trustees,  and  consecrated  by  Dr.  Words- 
worth, and  it  remains  to  this  day,  in  spite  of  all 
Burial  Amendment  Acts,  a  place  in  which  the  ex- 
clusive use  of  the  Burial  Service  in  the  Book  of 
Common  Prayer  by  a  minister  of  the  Church  is 
ensured.  The  Epworth  Trust  Deed  is  frequently 
consulted  by  those  who  are  desirous  of  securing 
ground  for  the  use  of  the  Church.  Those  who  were 
present  at  the  consecration  service  at  Epworth  speak 
to  this  day  of  the  evident  delight  which  the  Bishop 
took  in  the  whole  proceeding. 

The  above  have  been  selected  out  of  the  many 
disputed  subjects  in  which  the  Bishop  thought  it 
right  to  put  himself,  as  it  were,  into  the  attitude  of 
a  combatant,  because  they  especially  illustrate  one 
of  his  most  distinctive  characteristics  as  a  bishop, 
viz.,  his  fearlessness,  and  utter  indifference  as  to 
what  the  world  might  think  when  he  was  performing 
what  he  held  to  be  a  clear  duty.  But  in  point  of  fact 
there  was  not  a  question  in  which  the  interests  of  the 
Church  seemed  to  be  concerned  which  did  not  draw 
forth  from  him  a  speech,  or  a  sermon,  or  a  pamphlet. 


iSSo.]  LETTER  FROM  DR.  LIDDON.  273 

Whether  it  was  the  use  or  disuse  of  the  Athanasian 
Creed  in  divine  service,  or  the  Divorce  Question,  or 
the  marriage  with  a  deceased  wife's  sister,^  or  the 
subject  of  sisterhoods  and  vows,  or  that  of  private 
confession  and  absolution,  or  that  of  cremation,  or  the 
cause  of  secessions  to  the  Church  of  Rome,  or  the 
religious  character  of  our  Universities,  there  was  the 
Bishop  of  Lincoln  with  a  very  definite  opinion  backed 
up  with  abundance  of  learning,  and  more  or  less 
acute  arguments  in  favour  of  his  views. 

A  letter  from  Dr.  Liddon  of  March  23,  1872, 
must  be  taken  as  a  specimen  of  many  others,  which 
show  how  highly  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln's  champion- 
ship was  appreciated  : — 

I  think  I  must  be  indebted  to  your  Lordship  for  a  copy 
of  your  republished  speech  in  Convocation  on  the  Athana- 
sian Creed  ;  and  if  so,  I  beg  to  thank  you  very  sincerely. 
I  had  looked  anxiously  for  the  promised  republication, 
and  before  receiving  this  copy,  had  sent  sixty  off  by  the 
post,  as  I  hope  yet  to  send  a  great  many  more.  The 
speech  condenses  replies  to  the  current  objections  to  the 
Creed  most  admirably.     I  hope  that  it  is  not  impertinent 

^  On  these  two  questions  he  had  taken  a  prominent  part  'long 
before  he  became  a  Bishop.  In  1854  a  "Declaration  of  the 
Clergy  on  Marriage  and  Divorce,"  for  which,  in  less  than  a  fort- 
night, 6750  signatures  were  obtained,  was  drawn  up  and  widely 
circulated  by  his  means.  His  "  Occasional  Sermons  "  during  the 
same  year  are  remarkably  valuable  for  their  exhaustive  discussion 
of  the  Marriage  Question  under  its  various  aspects.  In  1859  a 
petition  against  legalizing  marriage  with  a  deceased  wife's  sister, 
signed  by  the  Dean  (Dr.  Trench)  and  a  large  number  of  the 
clergy  of  London  and  Westminster,  was  zealously  promoted  by 
Dr.  Wordsworth. 


274       THE  EPISCOPATE— BURNING  QUESTIONS.     [1880. 

in  me  to  say  that  it  even  adds  to  your  Lordship's  great 
claims  to  the  affectionate  respect  and  gratitude  of  all 
true  churchmen. 

To  the  Universities  question  we  shall  have  to 
revert  in  connection  with  the  general  subject  of 
education  ;  and,  of  the  rest,  there  is  only  one  on 
which  a  remark  is  necessary.  Bishop  Wordsworth's 
arguments  against  cremation  were  so  misunderstood 
or  misrepresented  that  he  was  credited  with  the 
absurd  theory  that  the  burning  of  the  human  body 
would  be  an  obstacle  to  its  resurrection.  What  he 
really  did  say  was,  that  it  might  be  an  obstacle  to 
the  belief  in  its  resurrection,  a  very  different 
matter.^ 

He  had  anticipated  such  criticism  by  the  ollow- 
ing  lines  in  the  "  Holy  Year,"  hymn  26  : — 

Although  their  bodies  hid  from  men, 

Like  that  of  Moses  be, 
Scattered  to  winds,  consumed  in  flanie^ 

Or  whelmed  in  the  sea. 

Yet  Thou  dost  count  the  dust  of  each  ; 

And  at  Thy  Trumpet's  call. 
All  bodies  will  again  appear, 

And  each  be  seen  by  all. 

'  We  are  indebted  to  the  Rev.  J.  Luff,  of  Weston,  near 
Stevenage,  for  calling  our  attention  to  this  point. 


CHAPTER  X. 

THE  EPISCOPA  IE. 
PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  THE  DIOCESE. 

It  will  now  be  a  relief  to  turn  from  those  contro- 
verted questions,  in  which  the  Bishop  took  a  brave 
and  prominent  part,  to  his  practical  work  in  the  dio- 
cese. And  in  speaking  of  this  we  must  begin  where 
Bishop  Wordsworth  himself  always  began,  with  the 
Cathedral.  To  a  man  of  his  historical  and  poetical 
mind  both  the  fabric  and  the  system  would  be  natu- 
rally attractive.  It  was  especially  in  connection  with 
the  cathedral  that  he  loved  to  think  of  his  great  pre- 
decessors, of  Remigius,  of  S.  Hugh,  of  Bishop 
Grossteste,  of  Bishop  D'Alderby,  of  Bishop  Aln- 
wick, of  Bishop  Sanderson,  of  Bishop  Wake,  of 
Bishop  Gibson,  &c.  His  sense  of  the  beautiful  and 
the  magnificent  was  awakened  by  "  this  stately  fabric 
planted  on  the  top  of  this  noble  hill,  and  looking  out 
far  and  wide  upon  the  city  beneath  it,  and  over  the 
vast  plain  around  it,  a  conspicuous  object  at  the  dis- 
tance of  many  miles,  like  a  holy  Parthenon  on  a 
Christian  Acropolis."  But  it  was  not  merely  from 
the  standpoint  of  history  and  poetry,  but  also,  and 
chiefly,  from  that  of  practical  utility,  that  he  desired 

T    2 


276  EPISCOPA  TE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.  [1869— 

to  regard  the  cathedral  church  of  S.  Mary's,  Lincoln. 
It  was  to  be  admired  as  a  grand  memorial  of  the 
dead  past,  but  it  was  also  to  be  utilized  as  a  centre 
of  light  and  life  in  the  living  present.  "  The 
spiritual  life  of  the  diocese  should  flow  from  the 
cathedral  as  its  fountain,  like  the  mystic  river  in 
Ezekiel's  vision,  which  welled  from  beneath  the 
altar,  and  watered  the  land,  and  cleansed  the  Dead 
Sea." 

To  this  end  he  revived  a  custom  which  had  been 
in  abeyance  for  more  than  a  hundred  years,  the 
triennial  visitation  of  the  cathedral  body.  His  first 
visitation  was  held  in  1873,  and  in  his  charge  ^  he  at 
once  struck  the  key-note  of  all  his  future  action.  A 
cathedral  was  not  to  be  regarded  merely  as  a  mag- 
nificent fabric,  nor  as  a  school  of  Church  music  and  a 
model  of  liturgical  order  to  a  diocese,  nor  as  a  place 
which  offered  rewards  for  work  already  done,  or 
quiet  retirement  for  learned  leisure.  To  learn  what  it 
was  beyond  all  this  he  referred  the  capitular  body  to 
their  own  code  of  statutes,  the  "  Laudum  "  and  the 
"  Novum  Registrum  "  of  Bishop  Alnwick  (1436 — 
1450).  In  1874  he  reissued  these  statutes,  and 
presented  them  to  each  member  of  the  cathedral 
body.  Each  residentiary  canon  had  his  own  pecu- 
liar work,  and  in  Bishop  Wordsworth's  opinion  the 

'  This  address  was  reprinted  in  America  and  "recognized  by 
the  writer  of  an  essay  on  '  The  Cathedral  System  adapted  to 
our  wants  in  America '  (Rev.  F.  Granger),  as  supplying  valuable 
suggestions  for  the  consideration  of  the  American  Church." — 
'  Diocesan  Addresses,"  1S76,  p.  98. 


—1885.]  THE  CATHEDRAL  SYSTEM.  277 

salvation  of  the  cathedral  system  would  be  the  con- 
stant residence  of  all,  and  the  regular  and  efficient 
performance  of  their  proper  work.  With  Bishop 
Wordsworth  to  be  convinced  of  a  thing  and  to 
endeavour  to  carry  it  out  ahvays  went  hand  in  hand, 
and,  therefore,  he  never  rested  until  he  had  carried 
out  his  ideal.  With  that  instinct  for  what  is  striking 
and  effective  which  he  always  showed,  he  commenced 
his  visitation  at  the  Chapter-house  of  Lincoln  and 
ended  it  in  the  Chapter-house  of  Southwell,  and  as 
he  used  the  traditions  of  the  former  as  an  example, 
so  he  used  those  of  the  latter  as  a  warning.  The 
last  Prebendary  of  Southwell  died  in  this  year  (1873). 
Such  an  event  was  not  one  w^hich  the  bishop  would 
let  slip  without  utilizing  it  to  point  a  moral.  He 
commenced  his  address  with  an  impressive  abrupt- 
ness which  showed  that  he  had  the  instincts  of  a 
true  orator : — 

The  grave  has  closed  over  the  last  Prebendary  of  South- 
well. With  him  the  history  of  this  church  as  a  capitular 
foundation  comes  to  an  end.  ...  At  the  close  of  this  visi- 
tation I  find  myself  in  the  Chapter-house  of  Southwell, 
without  a  single  prebendary  surviving  of  that  long  line  of 
ancestry  which  dates  from  an  earlier  period  than  the 
pedigree  of  any  noble  in  the  land,  or  even  the  monarchy 
itself 

And  then  he  proceeded  to  deduce  a  practical 
lesson  to  be  learnt,  repeating  what  he  had  said  at 
Lincoln — that  no  institution  was  ever  destroyed 
except  by  itself,  and   showing  how   Southwell   had 


27Z  EPISCOPATE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.  [1869— 

been  ruined  by  non-residence,  pluralities,  want  of 
definite  work,  and  consequent  secularlty.  Southwell, 
largely  through  the  efforts  of  Bishop  Wordsworth 
himself,  has  risen  from  its  ashes  to  a  new  and  still 
higher  phase  of  Kfe  than  that  which  it  enjoyed  during 
the  twelve  centuries  of  its  capitular  existence. 
Lincoln  will  long  retain  the  traces  of  Bishop 
Wordsworth's  episcopate. 

In  little  more  than  a  year  after  the  delivery  of 
this  charge,  the  marriage  of  the  Bishop's  third 
daughter,  Mary,  to  the  Rev.  J.  J.  Trebeck,  gave 
the  place  an  additional  interest  in  his  eyes,  and  his 
visits  there,  especially  his  confirmation  visits,  were 
among  the  bright  spots  of  his  diocesan  work. 

Southwell,  S.  Matthias^  Day^  1880. 
My  dearest  E., — Thank  you  for  your  loving  letter,  which 
has  reached  me  here  to-day,  on  my  entrance  on  the  twelfth  year 
of  my  episcopate — an  Apostolic  number.  Tw  ©ew  Sd^a.  We 
thought  that  we  could  not  spend  it  better  than  by  coming 
to  hold  a  Confirmation  in  the  old  Minster  here,  which  we  hope 
and  pray  will,  ere  long,  become  a  cathedral.  Mr.  Torr,  who 
has  done  so  much  for  Liverpool,  was  a  Lincolnshire  squire  ;  and 
this  is  a  good  omen.  We  return  to-morrow  in  order  to  receive 
friends  on  Thursday  (Chancellor  Phillimore,  Archdeacon  Maltby, 
Canons  Wilde  and  Bullock),  who  are  coming  to  us  for  the 
adjourned  visitation,  which  has  a  good  deal  of  importance, 
on  account  of  sundry  questions  which  have  been  raised  as  to 
our  Constitution  and  Code  of  Law.  It  is  rather  a  serious  affair. 
On  Saturday  we  expect  Dean  and  Mrs.  Goulburn  *  for  his  sermon 

*  Dr.  Goulburn^  the  Dean  of  Norwich,  was  a  valued  friend,  in 
conjunction  with  whom  and  with  Dean  Burgon  he  afterwards 
publishedhis  thoughts  on  the  Revised  Version  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment. 


—1885.]  EDUCATION.  279 

in  the  cathedral  on  Sunday,  and  on  the  following  day  we 
begin  our  confirmations.  Your  dear  mother  is  fairly  well, 
thank  God  ;  but  has  not  the  faculty  of  allowing  other  people 
to  help  her.  Will  you  tell  John,  with  my  love,  that  we  are  to 
have  (D.V.)  a  meeting  at  Lincoln  of  those  connected  with 
missionary  colleges,  early  in  July  (on  Dr.  Bailey's  suggestion), 
and  hope  for  some  representatives  from  S.  Stephen's.^  Also 
on  July  27,  the  President  of  the  Royal  Archasological  Institute 
is  coming  to  us,  and  they  propose  to  spend  a  week  at  Lincoln 
and  •  in  the  neighbourhood.  I  wish  John  would  undertake 
a  paper  on  the  Milestone  and  S.  ]\Iaiy-le-Wigford's  inscrip- 
tion, and  some  other  points  of  antiquarian  interest  recently- 
brought  to  light,  and  the  Basilica.  .  .  .  We  hope  that  the 
honeymoon  will  be  spent  at  Kingswear.'*  All  looks  very  fair 
just  now,  and  we  have  also  been  made  glad  by  the  news  of 
the  grandson  at  Old  Swinford.^  ...  I  hope  that  Esther  (Mrs. 
J.  Wordsworth)  is  well  again.  Much  love  to  her  from  us  all.  I 
long  for  a  alk  with  John  upon  Philo. 

Your  loving  father, 

C.  Lincoln. 

One  point  on  which  the  bishop  laid  especial  stress 
was  the  part  which  the  cathedral  ought  to  take  in 
education  ;  and  this  leads  us  to  the  subject  of  edu- 
cation generally  in  connection  with  Bishop  Words- 
worth's episcopate.  His  one  leading  idea  was  to 
give  to  all  education  a  Christian  tone,  and  this  idea 
he  endeavoured  to  work  out  from  the  lowest  to  the 
highest  branch  of  the  educational  system.  To  begin 
with  the  lowest. 

^  S.  Stephen's  House,  Oxford,  recently  founded  for  the  train- 
ing of  missionaries. 

^  Of  his  daughter  Dora,,  who  this  year  was  married  to  Chan- 
cellor Leeke.  His  second  son,  Christopher,  had  married  (April 
14,  1874)  Miss  Reeve. 

^  Of  his  brother,  the  Bishop  of  S.  Andrevv's. 


:>.%o  EPISCOPATE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.  [1869— 

He  found  elementary  education  in   a  satisfactory 
state  when  he  commenced  his  episcopate.     His  pre- 
decessor, Bishop  Jackson,  had  taken  a  deep,  intelli- 
gent, and   thoroughly  practical  interest  in  the  sub- 
ject, and  the  results  were  very  apparent.     Above  all, 
he  found    an    admirable    training-school  for    female 
teachers  established   at  Lincoln  under  Bishop  Jack- 
son's auspices,  to  the  merits  of  which,  and  especially 
of  its  most   indefatigable    and   successful  Principal, 
Canon    Hector   Nelson,   he  never  failed    to  pay  a 
warm  tribute  in  his  pastoral  addresses.     This  train- 
ing-school had  achieved  the  reputation  of  being  one 
of  the  very  best — if  not  the  very  best — of  its  kind  in 
the  kingdom,  and  it  fully  maintained  its  high  repute 
during   Bishop  Wordsworth's  episcopate.     Among 
the    "  Agenda   crvv   0ea>  "    already  referred   to,  one 
was  "  Chapel  for  the  training-school,"  and  he  lived 
to  see  this  "  Agendum,"  like  most  of  the   rest,  be- 
come an  "  Actum."     "  What,"  said  he  to  a  friend, 
now  a  Canon  of  Winchester,  "  is  a  college  without  a 
chapel?"      "An    angel    without    wings,"    was    the 
reply,  which  gratified  and  delighted  the  Bishop,  who 
often  referred  to  it.     The  Principal  testified  to  the 
great  value  of  this  chapel  (the  first  stone  of  which  was 
laid  by  Mrs.  Wordsworth),  as   being  "a  holy  bond 
which  bound  all  parts  of  the  school,"  as  "  elevating 
the  religious  tone  of  all  the  little  community,"  and  as 
"  helping  to  raise  the  musical  proficiency  of  the  school 
to    a   higher    standard    than    was    attained    by    any 
similar  institution  in  England." 


—1885.]  ELEMENTARY  EDUCATION.  281 

But  very  soon  after  the  Bishop's  coming  to  Lin- 
coln, elementary  education  entered  upon  a  new 
phase  in  consequence  of  the  Education  Act  of  1870. 
The  Bishop,  as  we  have  seen,  regarded  with  much 
misgiving  the  effects  of  this  Act ;  and  if  some  of  his 
gloomy  anticipations  have  happily  not  been  realized, 
so  far  as  the  diocese  of  Lincoln  is  concerned,  it  is 
probable  that  the  Bishop's  own  efforts  contributed  in 
no  slight  degree  to  the  non-fulfilment  of  his  own 
prophecy.  He  was  never  weary  of  impressing  upon 
his  clergy  the  vital  importance  of  keeping  up  their 
church  schools,  of  taking  regularly  a  personal  part 
in  the  instruction,  especially  the  religious  instruction, 
of  straining  every  nerve  to  prevent  the  transference 
of  church  schools  to  school  boards,  and,  if  possible, 
of  staving  off  a  school  board  altogether.  The  con- 
sequence was  that  in  almost  all  the  large  towns  of 
the  diocese  (Lincoln  itself  included)^  the  require- 
ments of  the  Education  Department  were  amply 
satisfied  without  having  recourse  to  a  board  school 
at  all.  Nor  was  the  standard  of  religious  knowledge 
lowered  in  consequence  of  the  want  of  the  stimulus 
which  the  hope  of  a  Government  grant  had  pre- 
viously to  1870  supplied.  The  regular  system  of 
religious  inspection  which  had  existed  during  the 
time  of  his  predecessor  was  kept  up,  and  the  office 
of  a  paid  inspector  in  chief  instituted  with  the 
happiest    effects.       A    religious    prize    scheme    was 

^  In  the  case  of  Lincoln   this  evil  was  mainly  averted  by  the 
self-sacrificinsf  and  strenuous  exertions  of  Canon  Hector  Nelson. 


2%z\EPI SCOP  ATE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.  [1869  — 


formed,  and  still  continues  to  offer  a  wholesome 
stimulus  to  the  energy  of  the  children  in  national 
schools.  The  Bishop  could  urge  his  clergy  to 
be  active  in  this  matter  with  the  clear  conscience 
and  with  the  personal  experience  of  one  who  had 
practised  what  hep  preached,  having  been  him- 
self a  regular  and  active  teacher  in  his  own  parish 
school  for  nearly  twenty  years. 

Ascending  a  step  higher  in  the  educational  ladder 
we  find  the  Bishop,  as  might  have  been  expected 
from  one  who  had  himself  been  a  head- master,  and 
who  had,  in  that  capacity,  made  it  his  chief  object 
to  give  a  Christian  tone  to  his  pupils,  showing  a 
deep  interest  in  the  Christian  character  of  schools 
for  the  middle  and  upper  classes.  He  urged  his 
clergy  to  do  what  they  could  to  maintain  that 
character  in  the  endowed  grammar-schools  of  the 
diocese  ;  this  was  one  of  the  subjects  discussed 
at  the  first  Diocesan  Conference,  when  a  committee 
was  formed  to  examine  and  report  upon  the  matter ; 
and  by  a  somewhat  unusual,  but  very  proper  and 
graceful  act,  he  conferred  a  canonry  upon  one  of  the 
most  experienced  and  successful  head-masters  In 
the  diocese — Dr.  Pattenden  of  Boston.  Bishop 
Wordsworth  found  himself  able,  in  one  instance,  to 
help  on  the  cause  of  secondary  education  in  what 
would  be  in  his  eyes  not  its  least  Important  form. 
He  was  much  interested  in  the  "  middle  school  "  at 
Burgh,  founded  by  the  deeply-lamented  vicar,  the 
Rev.    W.    E.    Thomason ;    and    when    that    much- 


—  iS85.]       S.  PAUL'S  MISSION  HOUSE,  BURGH.  283 

needed  institution,  owing  to  a  variety  of  causes 
into  which  it  is  not  necessary  to  enter,  collapsed, 
Mr.  Jowitt  suggested  and  he  heartily  recognized  the 
suitability  of  the  school-buildings  for  the  purpose  of 
a  college  for  youths  who  were  intended  for  foreign 
mission-work,  in  the  early  stage  of  their  training. 
Its  past  associations  (a  fact  which  always  had  great 
weight  with  Bishop  Wordsworth)  pointed  out  Burgh 
as  a  proper  place  for  this  most  important  project. 
It  was  connected  with  missionary  work  through  two 
of  its  vicars.  One  had  been  the  second  missionary 
bishop  in  Central  Africa,  the  other  had  been  closely 
connected  with  missions  in  South  India.  "  Here,'' 
he  said,  "  Bishop  Tozer  animated  his  parishioners 
with  missionary  zeal,  and  kindled  the  same  in  those 
about  him.  Here  Bishop  Steere  was  induced  to 
devote  himself  to  missionary  work  in  Central  Africa, 
so  that  we  may  truly  say  Bishop  Tozer  lives  in 
Bishop  Steere,  and  W.  E.  Thomason  in  both. 
Though  the  destination  of  the  building  has  to  some 
extent  changed,  there  is  nothing  like  difference 
between  the  past  and  the  present ;  the  past  has 
glided  into  the  present,  as  I  hope  the  present  will 
glide  into  the  future."  By  the  indefatigable  exer- 
tions of  the  Rev.  J.  H.  Jowitt,  then  Vicar  of  S. 
Mark's,  Holbeach,  the  scheme  was  floated  and 
went  on  prosperously.  "  To  him,"  as  the  Bishop 
testified  at  the  opening,  "  the  Mission  House  at 
Burgh  will  mainly  owe  its  existence  and  prosperous 
commencement,"and  he  deemed  it  a  most  fortunate 


284  EPISCOPATE— PRACTICAL  WORK INDI0CESE.li%6()— 

circumstance  that  they  were  able  to  secure  for  the 
first  Principal  one  who  had  spent  fifteen  of  the  best 
years  of  his  life  as  a  missionary  in  India,  and  had  been 
the  Principal  of  Bishop's  College,  Calcutta  (Rev. 
Canon  Skelton).  On  S.  Paul's  Day,  1878,  S.  Paul's 
Mission  House  was  opened.  The  promoters  were 
very  modest  in  their  aims.  The  students  were  to  be 
passed  on  from  Burgh  to  a  higher  college — generally 
S.  Augustine's,  Canterbury.  The  house  was  to  be 
opened  tentatively  for  five  years,  but  the  success 
during  those  trial  years  was  so  encouraging  as  to 
induce  them  to  carry  on  the  undertaking,  and  the 
bishop  had  the  satisfaction  of  knowing  before  he 
died  that  the  Burgh  Mission  House  was  established 
on  a  firm  and  permanent  footing.  He  contributed 
largely  to  its  expenses,  and  made  a  point  of  visiting 
it  year  by  year.  And  now  the  erection  of  a 
"  Wordsworth  wing,"  built  with  money  bequeathed 
by  him,  and  opened  on  September  16,  1886,  by  his 
successor,  whose  touching  words  on  the  occasion 
will  long  be  remembered,  will  associate  his  name  with 
it  for  all  time. 

But  it  was  in  his  revival  of  one  of  the  old  functions 
of  the  cathedral  system  that  Bishop  Wordsworth 
did  his  most  distinctive  work  for  the  cause  of  Chris- 
tian education.  "  Residence  and  work"  was,  as  we 
have  seen,  the  Bishop's  motto  for  the  residentiaries, 
as  "  reside  or  resign "  was  for  the  parish  priest 
seeking  a  protracted  leave  of  absence.  And 
there    was    no  part    of    that    work  on   which    he 


— 18S5.]  SCHOL.E  CANCELLARII.  285 

insisted  so  much  as  that  which  fell  to  the  chancellor 
of  the  Cathedral.  "Our  cathedral  churches,"  he 
said,  "were  intended  to  perform  functions  like  those 
which  were  discharged  of  old  by  '  the  schools  of  the 
prophets,'  in  the  days  of  Samuel  and  Elijah,  and  we 
know  that  in  ancient  days  the  cathedral  church  of 
Lincoln  performed  that  holy  work.  Young  men 
came  from  Iceland  in  the  twelfth  century  to  be 
educated  for  holy  orders  here.  Is  there  not  a  need 
that  this  work  of  training  for  the  ministry  should  be 
renewed  here  at  the  present  time  ? "  And  it  was 
renewed.  And  as  the  chancellor  was  "the  theolo- 
gian, the  ecclesiastical  professor  and  lecturer,  the 
homilist,  the  school-inspector,  the  grammarian,  the 
librarian,  and  the  secretary  of  the  capitular  body," 
upon  him  the  main  burden  of  the  work  fell.  Hence 
arose  the  "  Scholae  Cancellarii."  But  on  this  point, 
the  following  account,  kindly  written  for  this  work 
by  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  will  render  any 
words  of  ours  unnecessary  : — 

The  first  thing  about  Scholar  was  that  after  I  had 
preached,  as  Prebendary  of  Heydour,  on  May  i,  1870,  the 
Bishop  as  we  went  away  said,  "  Now,  I  will  tell  you 
all  that  is  in  my  heart.  First,  you  must  print  that  sermon, 
and  it  must  be  called,  '  Where  are  the  schools  of  the 
Prophets  ? '  and  then  you  must  look  forward  to  this.  One 
day,  no  matter  how  far  off,  you  must  come  here  as  Chan- 
cellor, and  you  must  restore  the  schools  of  the  Prophets 
here." 

About  June,  1873,  we  had  settled  into  the  Chancery, 
after  all  the  work  of  renewal  and  restoration  was  done, 


286  EPISCOPA  TE—PRA  CTICAL  WORK  IN  DI0CESE.[i%6q— 

and  the  Bishop  became  very  anxious  that  the  "  Cancellarii 
Scholar,"  which  I  proposed  to  him  as  the  name  of  it, 
taken  from  the  Nov.  Registrum,  should  begin.  He  gave 
two  rooms  in  the  Old  Palace  for  lecture-rooms,  and  had 
them  fitted  up. 

The  first  two  students  were  Luard  and  Alfred  Hodge 
— the  latter  a  local  preacher.  His  first  Sunday  in  the 
Cathedral,  with  (as  he  said)  the  heavenly  music  of  the 
heavenly  words,  and  the  Sacrament,  "  the  clergy  and  minis- 
ters," before  the  Bishop  and  about  him,  and  the  people 
on  all  sides  of  him,  as  he  sits  in  the  ancient  throne  in  his 
cope,  looking  like  the  father  and  ruler  of  all  in  the  Lord's 
name, — made  him  feel  that  the  assurances  of  his  old 
friends  that  whatever  he  gained  in  the  Church  of  England 
he  would  lose  in  spirituality,  were  all  wrong  ;  he  had 
never  entered  into  spirituality  or  thought  that  earth  was 
included  in  heaven  before." 

The  Bishop  gave  in  the  most  ample  way  all  that  -was 
needed  for  the  support  of  the  work,  and  promised  to  do 
so  until  the  fees  of  the  students  were  sufficient  to  provide 
for  the  tuition  requisite.  Of  course  the  theory  (and  prac- 
tice) was  that  the  Chancellor's  organizing  work  and  lec- 
turing and  correspondence  were  his  duty,  which  he  owed  the 
Cathedral  as  its  Canon  and  Chancellor.  Then  he  shortly 
after  provided  for  Canon  Crowfoot's  coming,  to  our  great 
blessing  and  happiness,  who,  when  the  vacancy  of  the 
Vice-Chancellorship  occurred  through  the  death  of  an  old 
singing-man  who  had  held  the  office,  was  made  Vice-Chan- 
cellor, and  as  the  students  increased  and  tuition  fees  with 
them,  and  many  of  the  clergy  and  laity  of  the  diocese 
subscribed,  the  Bishop  also  kept  increasing  his  gifts,  and 
we  then  had  Mr.  Worllcdgc  as  our  tutor,  and  he  was  also 
made  a  Prebendary.  Thus  it  became  a  part  of  the 
Cathedral  organization  in  the  truest  sense,  as  it  had  been 
anciently.  The  Dean  in  the  kindest  way,  though  he  had 
no  preconceived  affection  for  theological  colleges,  allowed 


— 1885.]  SCHOL.-E  CANCELLARII  287 

us  once  more  to  fit  up,  so  as  not  to  interfere  with  any- 
ancient  features,  and  yet  to  be  bright,  the  Morning 
Chapel  of  the  Cathedral  for  our  daily  prayers.  The  work- 
men of  the  Cathedral  soon  joined  us  also,  by  the  Dean  and 
Chapter's  permission,  and  many  persons  from  the  Close. 
The  service  was  exactly  one  quarter  of  an  hour,  always 
ending  at  the  stroke  of  eight  with  the  prayer  which  was 
being  read  at  the  time.  Twice  a  week  the  service  took 
the  form  of  the  Collects  of  the  day,  with  an  address  as 
inward  and  devotional  as  it  could  be  made,  out  of  the 
Scripture,  which  was  explained  in  course,  a  Gospel  and 
the  Psalms  in  alternate  quarters.  Canon  Crowfoot's  lec- 
tures on  the  Psalms  fulfilled  to  perfection  what  we  desired, 
viz.,  to  guide  the  work  of  the  students  to  their  innermost 
life.  In  every  detail  the  Bishop  took  the  most  minute  and 
fatherly  interest — knew  and  inquired  into  the  history  of 
the  students,  occasionally  addressed  them,  assisted  some 
of  them,  in  the  most  liberal  and  affectionate  way,  and  soon 
considered  it  to  be,  what  he  always  hoped,  a  most  effec- 
tive and  rich  auxiliary  in  providing  clergy  for  the  great 
diocese,  not  University  men  only,  whom  he  highly  valued, 
but  men  of  large  experience  often,  and  often  of  real 
devotedness.  To  deliver  o^iyia6a.<^  from  egotism  without 
wounds  is  a  hard  task,  and  the  Bishop's  care  about  this 
was  most  true  and  often  effective. 

As  the  "  Scholze  "  grew  he  was  asked  one  day,  "  What 
was  to  be  done  for  lecture-rooms  ? "  as  the  lectures 
had  now  become  much  divided  up  and  very  numerous. 
"Would  it  be  a  good  thing  to  try  to  restore  the  two 
beautiful  rooms,  which  were  in  ruins  in  Alnwick's  Tower  ?  " 
"A  very  good  thing  indeed,"  he  said,  and  instantly 
devoted  to  it  the  1000/.  which  the  diocese  had  raised  to 
reimburse  to  him  the  monstrous  expenses  to  which  he 
had  been  put  in  the  legal  steps  by  which  he  endeavoured 
to  guard  the  presentation  to  a  living  from  misuse. 

It  was  a  most  striking  sight  to   see   him   seated,   with 


288  EPISCOPA  TE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESEli2,6^— 

students  about  him,  sometimes  in  his  Tobes  just  as  he  had 
come  out  of  the  minster,  with  his  pastoral  staff  leaning 
against  the  wall  beside  him,  his  long  grizzled  hair  falling 
about  him,  his  fine  deep  eyes  seeing  nothing,  every  wrinkle 
and  every  line  of  his  face  made  keener  by  his  intense  faith, 
pouring  out  the  most  earnest  encouragements  about  their 
work  now  and  in  the  future — copious  illustrations,  quota- 
tions from  all  sorts  of  literature,  allusions,  with  "  You  re- 
member, I  am  sure,"  to  all  manner  of  incidents  in  history, 
letters  or  addresses  of  the  fathers,  of  which  they  had 
never  heard,  but  to  know  something  of  which  he  kindled 
them  up,  assurance  of  confidence  in  them,  and  of  affection 
for  them  and  their  teachers  ;  the  interest  of  their  position 
in  the  heart  of  the  glorious  monuments  of  the  Church 
work  of  old  now  once  more  coming  into  practical  force. 

When  the  new  hospital  was  built  he  purchased,  at  a  cost 
of  4C00/.  or  5000/.,  the  old  buildings,  in  a  magnificent 
situation  overlooking  the  Lincolnshire  plains  from  the 
"Sovereign  Hill"  on  one  side,  and  on  the  other  fronting 
the  Cathedral  towers,  an  ideal  place  for  the  Scholae. 

His  art  and  his  great  knowledge  enabled  him  to  take 
at  ordination  examinations  the  lessons  of  the  day,  morning 
and  evening,  and  draw  out  from  them  the  very  pith  of 
their  original  teaching,  and  also  their  bearing  on  the  pre- 
sent life  of  society  and  the  Church.  I  do  not  know  that 
he  was  ever  happier  in  this  than  one  week  when  he  drew 
out  the  prophet  Zephaniah  into  a  perfect  glow  of  modern 
life. 

Some  additional  particulars  supplied  to  us  by  the 
kindness  of  Canon  Worlledge  will  not  be  out  of 
place  here.  Speaking  of  the  appointment  of  the 
Rev.  J.  H.  Crowfoot  as  tutor,  he  quotes  the 
Bishop's  own  words,  that — 

"  He  resigned  his  prebendal  stall  of  Buckden  in  order  to 


—  1885.]  SCHOL.E  CANCELLARII.  289 

give  Mr.  Crowfoot  a  dignified  position  in  the  venerable 
Cathedral  which  is  the  symbol  and  centre  of  diocesan  work, 
and  he  took  the  first  step  (by  a  gift  of  100/.)  towards  the 
re-endowment  of  the  stall. '^  He  did  the  same  when  he 
appointed  the  Rev.  A.  J.  Worlledge  to  the  Prebend  of  Dun- 
holme  in  1875.  The  Bishop's  own  annual  subscription  to 
the  Bursary  Fund  of  the  Schol^e  was  100/.,  commenced  in 
1874,  and  continued  till  his  death.  This  was  always  given 
in  the  offertory  on  S.  Matthias'  Day.  He  resolved  to  pur- 
chase (August,  1877)  3-  house  "as  a  hostel  to  our  Scholae 
Cancellarii,"  as  the  main  question,  which  was  not  so  much 
de  domo  as  de  domino,  was  solved  to  his  satisfaction.  The 
house,  "  Lindum  Holme,"  was  accordingly  offered  "  as  a 
free  gift,'^  and  opened  on  February  ist,  (Eve  of  the 
Purification),  1878. 

In  the  next  year  (1879)  the  Bishop  asked  the  opinion  of 
the  Chancellor  and  tutors  "  as  to  the  desirability  of  en- 
larging Bishop's  Hostel  for  the  reception  of  more  students." 
"  He  had  heard  such  favourable  accounts  of  the  result  of 
the  experiment  of  endeavouring  to  give  them  the  comforts 
of  collegiate  life  that  he  was  very  anxious  to  see  an  endea- 
vour to  extend  them,  if  possible,  to  all  the  students."  The 
advice  given  was  in  accord  with  the  Bishop's  own  munifi- 
cent design  of  purchasing  the  old  county  hospital  for  a 
hostel.  This  was  done  at  the  cost  of  about  4000/.  at  the 
end  of  1879.  "Lindum  Holme"  remains  the  property  of 
the  Scholar,  and  is  a  source  of  some  endowment.  The 
new  hostel  was  opened  on  October  ist,  1880.  Through 
the  exertions  of  the  Sub-dean  (Canon  Clements)  and  others, 
a  fund,  amounting  in  all  to  about  2830/.,  was  raised  for  the 
structural  alterations  and  fiArnishing. 

It  is  only  necessary  to  add  in  this  place  that  two 
warm  supporters  of  the  work  which  was  afterwards 
carried  out,  Chancellor  Massingberd  and  the  Rev. 

u 


290  EPISCOPA  TE— PRACTICAL  WORK.IN DIOCESE.  [1869— 

Robert  Giles,  of  Horncastle,  had  passed  away  while 
the  project  was  still  in  its  infancy. 

The  subject  of  University  Education  was  one  in 
which  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln  took  the  deepest  in- 
terest, and  this  interest  was  stimulated  by  the  fact 
that,  as  Bishop,  he  was  Visitor  of  two  colleges  at 
Oxford,  and  one  at  Cambridge.  His  interest  in  his 
own  University,  of  course,  needed  no  quickening. 
But  circumstances  also  brought  him  into  closer 
contact  with  the  sister  University. 

In  June,  1870,  the  Bishop  had  a  D.C.L.  degree 
honoris  catisd  conferred  on  him  at  Oxford.  The 
commemoration  was  an  unusually  brilliant  one,  as 
the  Chancellor,  Lord  Salisbury,  was  present  in 
person.  The  Bishop  of  Lincoln  was  the  guest  of 
the  Warden  of  New  College  on  that  occasion,  which 
was  rendered  more  memorable  by  the  opening  of 
Keble  College. 

The  marriage  of  his  eldest  son  to  Miss  Coxe,  in 
that  same  year,  gave  him  an  additional  interest  in 
Oxford ;  and  the  friendship  to  which  this  gave 
rise  with  Dr.  Liddon,  Dr.  Mozley  (both  of  whom 
at  different  times  entrusted  important  work  to 
his  son's  care),  the  Warden  of  Keble  College, 
the  present  Bishop  of  Colombo,  Dr.  Bright,  and 
others,  dated  principally  from  this  time.  A  visit 
from  Dr.  Mozley  at  Riseholme,  not  long  before  his 
last  fatal  illness,  was  a  delightful  episode  in  the  lives 
of  both,  and  many  other  visits  from  Oxford  friends 
mifdit  be  recorded  here. 


—  1 885.]  UNIVERSITY  ED UCA  TION.  29 1 

In  1879  the  Bishop's  interest  in  Oxford  was 
still  further  increased  by  the  foundation  of  Lady 
Margaret  Hall,  an  institution  which  he  always  warmly 
supported,  and  for  which  up  to  the  very  close  of  his 
life  he  never  failed  to  express  his  fatherly  sympathy, 
as  was  evinced  by  one  of  the  last  letters  he  ever 
wrote. 

As  Visitor  of  Lincoln  and  Brasenose  he  felt  a 
special  interest  in  those  colleges,  of  the  latter  of  which 
his  son  was  a  member.  His  name  is  associated 
with  the  former,  among  other  reasons,  on  account 
of  the  following  circumstances,  which,  whatever  the 
reader  may  think  of  the  merits  of  the  case,  show  the 
vital  importance  which  the  Bishop  attached  to  the 
Christian  element  in  the  highest  education,  for 
which,  as  usual,  he  was  prepared  to  fight  without 
yielding  an  inch  either  to  fear  or  favour. 

In  the  year  1881  Bishop  Wordsworth,  in  his 
capacity  of  Visitor  of  Lincoln  College,  Oxford,  found 
himself  in  a  somewhat  painful  and  difficult  position. 

In  the  draft  of  new  statutes  prepared  for  that 
College  by  the  Oxford  University  Commissioners,  it 
was  proposed  to  deprive  the  Bishops  of  Lincoln  of 
the  right  to  appoint  to  a  fellowship  In  a  college 
founded  and  endowed  by  two  of  their  predecessors. 
Bishops  Fleming  and  Rotherham,  and  provided  with 
its  chapel  at  the  cost  of  another,  Bishop  Williams  ; 
and  in  other  ways  to  cut  off  the  connection  between 
the  college  and  the  Church, 

At  the  close  of  an  expostulatory  letter  dated  March 

u  2 


392  EPISCOPATE— PRACTICAL  WORKIN DIOCESE.  [1869- 


28th,  1 88 1,  and  addressed  to  the  Commissioners,  the 
Bishop  adds  : — 

If  this  expostulation  should  be  ineffectual  (which  I  can 
hardly  think  probable)  it  will  be  my  duty  ...  to  make  a 
public  protest  ...  at  a  meeting  of  the  clergy  and  laity 
of  this  diocese,  in  our  Diocesan  Conference.  I  shall  also 
be  under  the  necessity  (which  I  would  gladly  be  spared) 
of  moving  in  Parliament  for  a  humble  address  to  her 
Majesty  to  be  graciously  pleased  to  disallow  this  proposal  ; 
and  in  that  case  I  request  the  favour  of  information  from 
you  as  to  the  time  in  which  it  is  proposed  by  the  Commis- 
sioners that  the  draft  of  Lincoln  College  Statutes  should 
be  laid  on  the  table  of  the  House  of  Lords. 

.  The  University  Commissioners  did  not  admit 
the  force  of  the  Bishop's  expostulation,  and  he 
was  therefore  driven  to  the  step  of  petitioning 
her  Majesty  in  Council  on  this  subject.  \\\  the 
case  in  support  of  his  petition  addressed  to 
the  Universities  Committee  of  Privy  Council, 
June  1 6th,  188 1,  he  based  his  appeal  on  the 
grounds  already  mentioned  ;  on  the  objects  for 
which  the  college  was  founded,  "ad  laudem  Dei, 
ad  augmentum  cleri,  et  profectum  Universalis 
Ecclesice  ; "  on  the  original  statutes  requiring  the 
rector  and  all  the  fellows  to  take  priest's  orders,  &c., 
while  by  the  new  Code  "  neither  the  rector  nor  any 
one  of  the  fellows  need  be  in  holy  orders,  nor  be  a 
member  of  the  Church  of  England,  nor  even  be  a 
believer  in  the  Christian  religion."  Finally  he 
appealed  on  the  ground  of  the  rights  of  property 
involved  in  such  a  sweeping  change,  which   "  would 


—1885.]  NEW  STATUTES  OF  LINCOLN  COLLEGE.        29- 


serve  as  a  precedent  for  similar  attempts  at  con- 
fiscation." 

In  the  end  the  matter  had  to  be  carried  before  the 
House  of  Lords,  in  which  he  moved  a  resolution  on 
such  and  such  a  day  that  a  humble  address  should 
be  presented  to  her  Majesty,  praying  her  to  withhold 
her  assent  to  the  new  statutes  of  Lincoln  College. 
This  resolution  was  carried  by  a  majority  of  seventy- 
four  to  forty-one,  and  her  Majesty  complied  with  the 
prayer  of  the  address. 

In  this  manner,  by  his  courageous  action  he 
was  able  to  preserve  the  right  of  appointment 
of  a  clerical  fellow  in  the  college  of  Sanderson  and 
Wesley. 

The  Rev.  Andrew  Clarke,  whom  he  selected  for 
the  post  (after  consultation  with  resident  members 
of  the  college),  has  proved  himself  eminently  worthy 
of  the  Bishop's  choice,  both  as  a  teacher,  and  as 
incumbent  of  the  Church  of  S.  Michael's,  Oxford. 
He  explained  the  whole  matter  to  the  clergy  of  his 
diocese  in  his  charge  in  1882  (p.  64). 

It  is  satisfactory  to  be  able  to  state  that 
several  influential  members  of  the  college,  who  at 
first  regretted  what  was  done,  afterwards  were  con- 
vinced that  it  was  a  real  advantage  to  them  to  have  an 
opportunity  of  reconsidering  the  proposed  changes. 

We  may  add  that  in  the  summer  of  this  year  the 
Bishop  paid  a  friendly  visit  both  to  Lincoln  and 
Brasenose  colleges,  passing  a  few  days  at  Oxford 
under  the  hospitable  roof  of  the  Warden   of  Keble 


294  EPISCOPA  TE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.  [1869— 

College,  while  his  eldest  son  was  lying  ill  from  the 
effects  of  an  accident  which  interrupted  his  delivery  of 
the  Bampton  Lectures  of  that  year. 

He  was  no  less  diligent  and  painstaking  in  the 
performance  of  his  duties  as  Visitor  of  King's  College, 
Cambridge,  between  whose  venerable  Provost  and 
himself  there  subsisted  a  warm  and  sympathizing 
friendship. 

The  whole  habit  of  Bishop  Wordsw^orth's  mind, 
no  less  than  his  sense  of  duty,  would  necessarily  lead 
him  to  attach  great  importance  to  the  task  of 
awakening  and  sustaining  in  his  diocese  an  interest  in 
Missionary  work  both  abroad  and  at  home.  He 
clearly  saw  the  necessity  of  guarding  against  what 
may  be  termed  an  insular  spirit  in  regard  to  Chris- 
tianity. Hence,  as  we  have  seen,  he  always  com- 
menced his  charges  with  a  survey  of  the  general 
state  of  Christendom ;  hence  his  warm  welcome  of 
representatives  of  the  Greek  Church,  and  the  loving 
way  in  which  he  dwelt  on  the  points  on  which  the 
English  Church  agreed  with  them  ;  hence  his  readi- 
ness to  hold  out  the  right  hand  of  fellowship  so  far 
as  he  consistently  could  to  the  Old  Catholics  ;  and 
hence,  above  all,  the  deliofht  he  took  in  the  Pan- 
Anglican  Conference  at  Lambeth  in  1878. 

Feeling  thus  so  deep  an  interest  in  the  Church 
abroad.  Bishop  Wordsworth  naturally  laid  great 
stress  upon  the  duty  of  every  parish  in  his  diocese 
to  take  a  part  in  the  support  of  foreign  missions. 
In  all  his  charges  he  carefully  gave   the   statistics  of 


—  1885.]  FOREIGN  MISSIONS .  295 

the  sums  sent  from  the  diocese  to  the  two  o-reat 
missionary  societies  of  the  Church,  noting  their 
increase  or  decrease.  He  impressed  upon  his 
clergy  the  necessity  of  referring  frequently  in  their 
sermons  to  missionary  work,  and  of  infusing  into 
their  whole  ministry  a  missionary  spirit.  He  con- 
tended that  "  no  parish  could  be  said  to  be  in  a 
healthy  state  where  a  loving  zeal  for  the  missionary 
work  of  the  Church  was  not  an  essential  element  and 
an  integral  part  of  the  parochial  system."  He  made 
the  interest  taken  in  Christian  missions  one  of  the  two 
tests  by  which  the  clergy  were  to  try  the  faithfulness 
and  efficiency  of  their  ministry.  He  urged  them  to 
organize  a  system  by  which  subscriptions  might  be 
collected  at  stated  times  from  house  to  house.  He 
warned  them  against  "trusting  to  the  stimulus  pro- 
duced by  the  accidental  visit  of  a  deputation  (however 
useful  it  might  be  in  originating  and  quickening  mis- 
sionary spirit),"  and  maintained  that,  as  a  rule,  the 
parochial  clergy  were  the  best  deputations,  if  they 
would  inform  themselves  on  the  condition  and  pros- 
pects of  Christian  missions.  He  had  a  strong  faith 
in  the  efficacy  of  prayer  on  the  subject,  and  insisted  on 
the  observance  of  the  Day  of  IntercessionforMissions. 
He  hoped  that  this  might  be  an  occasion  for  private 
and  family,  as  well  as  public  prayer,  for  missions, 
and  composed  two  prayers  "  for  missions  and 
missionaries,  for  use  in  private  and  family  worship 
in  the  diocese,"  which  he  sent  to  each  clergyman 
with  his  pastoral  letter  on  the   Day  of  Intercession. 


296  EPISCOPA  TE—PRA  CTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.  [  1 869— 

His  own  personal  interest  in  the  work  of  the  Church 
abroad  never  flagged. 

Another  instance  of  Bishop  Wordsworth's  deep 
interest  in  missionary  work  was  the  formation  of  a 
Missionary  Guild  in  connection  with  the  "  Scholce 
Cancellarii,"  on  S.  Matthias'  Day,  1881.  The 
object  of  the  Guild  was  "  to  bind  together  past  and 
present  students  of  the  Lincoln  Theological  College, 
by  the  tie  of  regular  stated  intercession  and  alms- 
giving for  missions  both  at  home  and  abroad,  and 
to  unite  the  '  Scholee '  with  every  branch  of  the 
Anglican  Communion  throughout  the  world."  But 
here  again  we  adopt  the  account  given  us  by  Canon 
Worlledge  : — 

One  of  the  events  in  the  history  of  the  Scholee  which 
gave  the  Bishop  the  greatest  pleasure,  was  the  foundation 
of  a  Missionary  Guild  among  the  students,  due  to  the 
example  and  influence  of  a  singularly  earnest  young  mis- 
sionary," who,  having  worked  as  a  layman  under  Bishop 
Steere,  had  been  sent  home  to  prepare  for  ordination 
before  rejoining  the  mission.  The  Guild  was  founded  on 
the  thirteenth  anniversary  of  the  Bishop's  own  consecration 
(S.  Matthias'  Day,  1881).  Recontributed  50/.  to  its  funds, 
and  delivered  one  of  the  most  valuable  of  the  many  ad- 
dresses on  missionary  topics  which  he  delighted  to  give. 
It  was  in  this  address  that  he  said  that  "a  thorough  pro- 
found acquaintance  with  missionary  work  was  an  essential 
part  of  theological  study.  In  it  he  saw  a  corrective  to 
that  tendency  to  isolation,  of  which  there  was  so  much 
danger,  especially  in  small,  remote  country  parishes.  Mis- 
sionary reading  showed  how  Christian  readers  might  become 

■    I'hc  Rev.  F.  A.  Wallis. 


—  1885.]  HOME  MISSIONS.  297 

all  things  to  all  men,  and  exhibited  the  expansiveness,  the 
elasticity,  the  pliancy,  the  plasticity,  in  one  word,  the 
sympatJiy  of  the  Gospel."  Nor  was  the  moral  effect  less 
striking  than  the  intellectual.  "  To  endure  hardness  un- 
complainingly, to  meet  difficulties  unflinchingly,  was  the 
true  character  of  the  Christian  clergy  as  the  leaders  among 
Christian  soldiers.  And  this  the  students  might  learn 
from  the  example  of  our  noble  missionaries.  Let  them 
read  them,  study  them,  weigh  them  well,  and  seek  to  tread 
in  their  footsteps." 

The  Bishop  was  present  at  not  a  few  other  meetings  of 
the  Missionary  Guild  and  at  meetings  of  a  cognate  cha- 
racter held  in  the  large  library  of  the  Hostel,  now  of  the 
Anglo-Continental  Society,  now  for  the  reception  of  "  the 
Old  Catholic  Bishops — Bishops  Reinkens  and  Herzog — 
now  to  hear  an  address  on  Melanesia  fromx  Miss  Fanny 
Patteson,  or  to  welcome  Bishop  Smythies,  or  to  aid  in  the 
purchase  of  a  steam-dhow  on  Lake  Nyassa.  And  the 
force  thrown  into  the  proceedings  by  the  Bishop's  earnest- 
ness, and  grasp  of  great  principles,  had,  by  God's  blessing, 
its  effect  on  many  of  the  students  who  witnessed  his  energy, 
while  his  kindly  dignity  drew  out  very  real  and  affectionate 
reverence. 

But  while  he  entered  thus,  heart  and  soul,  into 
the  v^ork  of  Christian  missions  abroad,  he  never 
forgot  that  charity  should  begin  at  home.  When 
speaking  of  missionary  work  he  was  careful  to  add, 
"In  this  I  include  the  evangelization  of  some  of 
our  own  almost  semi-heathen  towns,"  and  he  took 
occasion  from  the  stir  aroused  by  the  Salvation 
Army  to  urge  his  clergy  to  emulate  their  energy 
and  enthusiasm.  "  Let  us  endeavour  to  show  to 
the  nation  that  the  Church  of  Christ  is  the  true 
'  Salvation  Army,'  fighting  under  the  banner  of  the 


i^Z  EPISCOPATE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.  [1869— 

Cross,  with  the  shield  of  faith  and  the  sword  of  the 
Spirit,  which  is  the  Word  of  God.  .  .  .  Let  us  do 
this  by  endeavouring  to  raise  up  a  faithful  band  of 
evangelists,  preaching  in  mission  chapels  in  our 
cities,  and  going  forth  into  their  streets  and  alleys, 
gathering  the  outcasts  of  society  into  those  tem- 
porary folds,  till  they  are  prepared  to  pass  into 
ampler  edifices.  Let  us  not  bate  one  jot  or  tittle  of 
the  doctrine  or  discipline  of  the  Church,"  &c.,  &c. 

He  promoted  the  formation  of  an  association  of 
clergymen  in  the  diocese,  who,  under  the  happy 
motto  of  "Novate  N  ovale  "  (break  up  your  fallow 
ground),  banded  themselves  to  go  forth  as  mission 
preachers  when  their  services  were  required.  He 
rightly  considered  that  such  an  institution  might 
be  beneficial  (as  it  has  been)  in  two  ways,  both  to 
the  parishes  visited  and  to  the  preachers  themselves, 
since  it  would  give  scope  for  the  energy  of  many  able 
men  who  were  settled  in  the  very  small  parishes  in 
which  Lincolnshire  abounds.  He  entered  warmly  into 
the  work  of  the  nine  days'  mission  at  Lincoln  in  1876, 
which  was  an  unusually  successful  effort,  and  his 
pastoral  letters  before  and  after  the  mission  are 
admirable  expositions  of  the  principles  of  mission- 
work. 

He  frequently  visited  that  important  centre  of 
labour.  Great  Grimsby,  and  a  memorial  of  his  interest 
in  the  place  will  long  remain  in  a  bell  given  by  him 
to  S.  Andrew's  Church  as  a  thankoffering  for  the 
cessation  of  the  small-pox,  inscribed 


—  i88s.]  HOME  MISSIONS.  299 


Voce  mea  laudo  Dominum  pro  peste  fugata, 
Hie  aigris  animis,  Christe,  medere,  precor. 

"  How  grand  it  will  be,"  he  exclaimed,  "  to  hear  it 
pealing  the  praises  of  God  across  the  Humber  ! " 
He  earnestly  promoted  the  establishment  of  a  Home 
for  Friendless  Women,  in  that  large  and  overcrowded 
seaport,  and  assuredly  no  scheme  would  he  have 
hailed  with  greater  delight  than  that  which  has  now 
been  set  on  foot,  the  Grimsby  Spiritual  Aid  Fund. 

He  put  prominently  before  his  clergy  the  claims 
of  the  two  Home  Mission  Societies  in  the 
Church  of  England,  the  Additional  Curates  and 
the  Pastoral  Aid  Societies,  and  perhaps  there  never 
was  a  scheme  into  which  he  threw  himself  with 
greater  vigour  than  the  Nottingham  Spiritual  Aid 
and  Church  Extension  scheme,  which  aimed  at  the 
noble  object  of  raising  60,000/.  for  home  missionary 
work  in  that  huge  town.  He  started  it  with  the 
munificent  offer  of  1000/.,  on  condition  that  19,000/. 
more  were  raised  to  meet  it.  He  offered  to  canvass 
the  rich  people  of  the  town  personally  for  aid  if 
necessary,  and  was  himself  the  suggester  of  the 
order  in  which  the  objects  were  named — that  is, 
spiritual  aid  first,  church  extension  second  to  it — for 
he  held  that  the  living  agency  was  the  most  im.por- 
tant,  and  that  when  the  proper  men  were  found,  and 
their  influence  had  made  itself  felt,  church  extension 
would  follow  as  a  necessary  consequence.  First  the 
clergyman,  then  the  congregation,  then  the  mission- 
room,  then  the  church,  was  to  his  mind  the  proper 


300  EP I  SCO  PA  TE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.  [  1 869— 

sequence  of  events,  and  he  animadverted  very 
strongly  upon  the  tendency  to  provide  churches 
before  there  was  a  congregation  to  fill  them.  This 
was  at  a  meeting  held  at  Nottingham,  January  19th, 
1882,  under  the  presidency  of  Earl  Manvers.  The 
Bishop's  speech  on  the  occasion  was  one  of  the  most 
stirring  he  ever  made,  and  ended  with  the  announce- 
ment, "  I  am  ready  to  dedicate  one-fifth  of  my  pro- 
fessional income  to  the  work  we  inaugurate  to-day." 

In  fact,  in  a  different  kind  of  way,  Nottingham 
impressed  the  imaginative  and  poetical  side  of  his 
nature  as  much  as  Lincoln  itself  did.  He  loved  to 
think  of  the  Nottinghams  of  old,  the  busy  centres  of 
commerce,  the  Florences,  the  Venices,  the  Genoas,  &c. 
Its  size,  its  noble  position,  its  wonderful  increase, 
its  spiritual  destitution  touched  him.  It  was  by  far 
the  largest  town  in  his  diocese.  Its  population  had 
increased  from  57,000  in  1851  to  188,065  in  1881  ; 
that  is,  it  had  more  than  trebled  itself  in  thirty  years  ; 
and  he  was  shocked  to  find,  from  a  religious  census 
taken  in  1880,  that  not  much  more  than  a  fifth  of 
this  vast  population  attended  any  place  of  worship 
at  all.  The  standard  of  morality  was  not  high,  as 
in  the  Bishop's  view  it  could  not  be  when  Christianity 
was  so  low.  The  people  of  Nottingham  had  shown 
strongly  a  spirit  of  enlightenment ;  they  had  built  a 
noble  Museum  of  Art,  or  rather  turned  the  grand  old 
Castle,  which  dominated  the  town,  to  that  purpose  ; 
they  had  opened  a  University  for  secular  learning; 
but  the  Bishop  felt  that,  good  as  these  objects  were 


J 


—  1 885.]  NOTTINGHAM.  301 

(and  he  had  taken  a  leading  part  in  both),  Notting- 
ham must  "crown  the  edifice"  by  bringing  Chris- 
tian influences  to  bear  before  any  real  amelioration 
could  take  place.  The  scheme  is  succeeding  well, 
and  no  doubt  will  succeed  ;  but  it  ought  never  to  be 
forgotten  that  the  first  impulse  to  it  was  given  by 
Bishop  Wordsworth.^ 

Another  occasion  on  which  Bishop  Wordsworth 
made  his  influence  deeply  felt  at  Nottingham  was  in 
1883,  when  a  transference  of  church  schools  to  the 
school  board  was  meditated.  The  Bishop  inaugu- 
rated the  scheme  of  a  Church  School  Board,  the 
object  of  which  was  to  secure  the  continuance  and 
efficient  maintenance  of  the  church  schools  by 
various  means.  He  issued  a  letter  to  the  clergy  and 
laity  of  Nottingham,  and  attended  an  important 
meeting  at  which  such  a  board  was  formed,  and 
contributed,  as  usual,  most  liberally  towards  the 
expenses  of  the  scheme.  He  paid  a  handsome  but 
well-deserved  tribute  to  the  religious  teaching 
encouraged  by  the  Nottingham  School  Board,  but 
pointed  out  that  there  was  no  guarantee  that  the 
board  would  always  consist  of  Christian-minded 
members.  He  was  well  backed  up  in  his  efforts  by 
Canon  Morse,  Canon  Tebbutt,  hon.  secretary  of  the 

®  In  speaking  of  Nottingham  we  can  never  fail  to  recall  the 
sympathy  and  hospitality  shown  him  by  Canon  Morse  and  his 
family,  a  name  that  will  be  long  treasured  with  reverence  and 
affection  in  that  town,  as  will  also  that  of  the  Rev.  Canon  Vernon 
Hutton,  in  the  neishbourina;  suburb  of  Sneinton. 


^02EP I  SCO  PATE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.  [1869— 

fund,  and  other  clergymen  and  Christian  laymen  of 
the  town,  and  the  result  was  that  the  threatened 
danger  was  averted  and  the  church  schools  of  Not- 
tingham maintained,  relieved  from  the  embarrassment 
into  which  the  poorer  of  them  had  fallen,  and  esta- 
blished, it  is  hoped,  on  a  permanent  basis. 

This  account  of  Nottingham  leads,  by  a  kind  of 
natural  sequence,  to  the  scheme  which  Dr.  Words- 
worth always  had  much  at  heart,  and  which  he  just 
lived  long  enough  to  see  accomplished — the  sub- 
division of  the  Diocese  of  Lincoln.  The  increase  of 
the  episcopate  was  a  matter  in  which  he  felt  a  deep 
interest  long  before  he  became  a  bishop  himself. 
As  early  as  i860  he  wrote  a  letter  to  Viscount 
Dungannon  on  the  subject,  which  letter  was  repub- 
lished at  the  request  of  the  "Additional  Home 
Bishoprics'  Endowment  Fund,"  with  a  preface  by 
the  bishop,  in  1877.  We  find  him  writing  on 
December  31st,  i860,  to  his  friend  Massingberd 
on  the  same  matter.  In  his  very  first  charge  (1870), 
after  having  spoken  gratefully  of  the  appointment  of 
a  suffragan,  he  adds  : — 

In  makinL^  this  public  acknowledgment  I  cannot  disguise 
from  you  my  deliberate  opinion  that  the  Diocese  of  Lincoln 
ought  to  be  divided.  .  .  .  The  populous  county  of  Notting- 
ham— one  of  the  foremost  in  England  for  intelligence 
enterprise,  and  opulence — ought  to  have  a  bishop  of  its 
own.  The  appointment  of  a  bishop  suffragan,  with  a 
title  derived  from  it,  may  be  expected  to  lead  to  that 
result. 

When  the  Diocese  of  Exeter  was  subdivided,  his 


—1885.]  SUBDIVISION  OF  THE  DIOCESE.  303 

hopes  were  raised  that  Lincohi,  which  was  the  next 
in  size,  might  soon  follow.  When  the  scheme  began 
to  take  a  definite  shape,  he  helped  with  a  lavish 
hand  to  swell  the  funds.  He  was  well  backed  by 
many  who  spared  no  pains  to  further  the  scheme. 
At  last  he  brought  the  matter  to  a  head  by  publicly 
announcing  that  unless  it  were  carried  out  at  once 
he  should  resign  his  see.  It  would  be  quite  foreign 
to  the  character  of  Bishop  Wordsworth  to  utter  an 
empty  threat.  No  doubt,  he  meant  literally  what 
he  said  ;  it  was  no  mere  feint  to  rouse  interest  in 
the  work.  But  it  was  wonderful  how  rapidly  the 
mere  hint  of  such  a  thing  as  the  Bishop's  resigna- 
tion did  revive  the  somewhat  flagging  progress  of 
the  Southwell  Bishopric.  No  one  wished  to  lose  the 
great  name  of  Christopher  Wordsworth  as  head  of 
the  Diocese  of  Lincoln.  So  money  flowed  in  apace, 
and  on  SS.  Philip  and  James'  Day,  1884,  within  a 
year  of  his  own  death,  he  had  the  satisfaction  of 
taking  part  in  the  consecration  of  the  first  Bishop 
of  Southwell,  and  of  welcoming  him  and  his  wife 
affectionately  at  Riseholme. 

On  Bishop  W^ordsworth's  influence  over  those 
who  came  to  receive  Holy  Orders  from  his  hands, 
it  will  suffice  to  insert  the  following  letter  from 
one  of  their  number,  only  premising  that  the  Bishop 
introduced  at  Lincoln  the  happy  arrangement  now 
frequently  adopted,  of  holding  the  examination  some 
months  before  the  ordination,  so  that  the  Ember 
Week  might   be   devoted  without  distraction  to  the 


304  EPISCOPA  TE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.  [1869— 

Strictly  spiritual  side  of  the  pastoral  office  ;  and  that 
he  always  entertained  the  candidates  for  Holy  Orders 
most  hospitably  at  Riseholme. 

vS.  Just  Vicarage,  Penzance, 
Dec.  10,  1886. 

My  dear  Sir, — The  thought  of  my  intercourse  with 
the  Bishop  of  Lincoln  is  one  of  the  happiest  memories  of 
my  life.  The  impression  he  made  upon  me  at  ordination 
times  is  the  experience  for  which  in  a  life  full  of  such 
blessings  I  have  most  cause  to  be  thankful.  The  days 
spent  at  Riseholme  before  the  ordination  Sunday  were  in 
the  best  sense  a  time  of  retreat.  Every  opportunity  was 
given  for  quiet  prayer  and  quiet  intercourse,  and  in  a 
singular  way  the  spirit  of  the  holy  home-life  of  the  family 
seemed  to  spread  over  those  who  were  hoping  to  become 
the  spiritual  sons  of  that  kind  host.  In  turns  we  all  sat 
by  him  at  meals,  and  his  gracious  kindness,  ready  sympathy, 
keen  wit,  and  endless  charity,  make  these  meals  oases  in 
the  rather  barren  tracts  of  my  memory.  I  never  had  a 
conversation  with  him  which  did  not  tend  to  make  me 
feel  very  ignorant,  very  superficial,  and  very  foolish,  and 
yet  he  paid  strange  respect  to  everything  one  said.  I 
remember  how  much  struck  I  was  by  seeing  the  bedrooms 
in  one  long  corridor,  named  after  the  several  descriptions 
of  Charity  in  i  Cor.  xiii.  I  used  to  think  that  the  law  of 
love  was  really  "  written  in  the  heart "  of  my  dear  bishop. 
It  was  sometimes  almost  amusing  to  hear  how  determined 
he  was  to  think  and  speak  good  of  all  men,  though  his 
great  knowledge,  and  in  many  ways  very  critical  mind, 
must  have  made  this  great  charity  a  hardly-acquired 
grace. 

At  least  twice  each  day  he  addressed  the  ordination 
candidates  in  the  chapel,  speaking  generally  (I  think)  on 
one  of  the  lessons  for  the  day,  and  contriving  to  give  us  a 
very  complete  view   of  the  principles   on   which  his  own 


— 1885  ]  ORDINA  TIONS. 


deep  convictions  were  based.  I  remember  the  stress  he 
laid  upon  Old  Testament  proofs  of  our  Lord^s  divinity,  and 
the  often  most  beautiful  way  in  which  he  illustrated  the 
fact  of  the  Sacramental  teaching  of  the  "  New  Testament 
lying  hid  in  the  Old." 

But  of  all  else  that  which  impressed  me  most  was  my 
bishop's  utter  belief  in  his  office  in  all  that  belonged 
to  ordination.  It  was  at  the  time,  and  has  often  been 
since,  a  great  comfort  to  me  to  know  how  entirely  and 
simply  he  believed  that  he  was  commissioned  by  his 
Master  to  give  me  my  commission."  He  prepared  us  for 
ordination,  and  he  ordained  us  as  though  he  meant  it ;  he 
knew  that  Christ  was  alive,  and  that  His  Church  could 
never  die.  To  have  been  ordained  by  him  is  very  much 
the  same  as  it  would  be  to  have  been  ordained  by  S.  Paul, 
or  S.  Polycarp,  or  S.  Cyprian  ;  he  seemed  to  live  in  the 
first  three  centuries.  I  have  often  felt  how  grandly  he 
would  have  fought  for  a  martyr's  crown.  I  think  he  found 
it  difficult  to  realize  the  popular  movements  of  our  own 
times  ;  I  remember  how  he  once  made  me  miserable  by 
checking  a  strong  expression  of  local  feeling  at  an  im- 
portant  meeting  in    Nottingham,  called  to  consider  the 

"  This  was  strikingly  emphasized  by  the  inscription  pasted  in 
the  Bibles  (A.V.)  put  into  the  hand  of  each  priest  ordained  at 
Lincoln,  of  which  the  following  is  a  specimen  : — '■'■  Johanm 
Andraves  Reeve  :  in  memoriam  :  sacerdotii  collati  :  et  :  pastoralis 
curse  commissse  :  a  Summo  Sacerdote  :  et  Principe  Pastorum  : 
Iesv  Christo  :  in  Eccl.  Cath.  Lincoln  :  in  Domiriica  /V°  Ad- 
ventus  :  A.  S.  vidccdxxii.  :  haec  viva  Dei  eloquia  :  d.d.  :  Chris- 
tophorus  :  episcopus  lincolniensis  :  fausta  precans  omnia."  The 
Most  Holy  Name,  in  red  letters  in  the  centre,  gives  special 
prominence  to  the  truth  conveyed,  and,  no  doubt,  often  brings  it 
home  to  the  priest  in  his  parish.  The  text  of  the  Gospels  (in 
Greek)  used  in  the  ordering  of  deacons  did  not  become  their 
property,  for  it  had  its  history.  It  was  the  handsome  volume  which 
Dr.  Gabell  gave  to  Commoner  Prefects  on  their  leaving  Winchester. 
[Latterly  a  Greek  Testament  was  given  ^o  each. — E.W.] 

X 


3o6  EPISCOPATE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.{\Zb^— 

division  of  the  diocese,  when  it  was  not  absolutely  settled 
that  the  new  see  must  take  its  name  from  a  village  rather 
than  from  a  great  and  thriving  town.  And  yet  on  the 
other  hand  it  was  he  who  worked  out  a  plan  for  mission 
districts  in  Nottingham,  which  has  materially  improved 
the  strength  and  vitality  of  the  Church  in  that  radical 
town  ;  and  it  was  he  who  first  gave  ecclesiastical  prefer- 
ment to  that  true  son  of  the  first  and  nineteenth  centuries 
whom  our  Lord  has  since  called  to  be  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury. 

Any  little  detail  of  our  Nottingham  work  used  to  interest 
him.  I  remember  especially  his  care  for  the  good  success 
of  our  daily  Matins.  At  his  request  the  service  had  been 
commenced  soon  after  I  was  ordained  deacon  ;  not  a  great 
many  people  prayed  then  with  us,  and  when  I  was  at 
Riseholme  for  priest's  orders  the  dear  bishop  asked  me 
about  the  numbers  of  our  congregation,  and  when  with  some 
shame  I  told  him  how  few  we  v/ere,  with  a  happy  revealing 
smile  he  asked  if  I  were  "  counting  the  angels." 

The  first  time  I  saw  him  he  was  in  the  pulpit  at  West- 
minster Abbey  soon  after  the  Vatican  Council  ;  he  was 
preaching  upon  a  comparison  between  S.  Peter's  at  Rome 
and  S.  Peter's  at  Westminster.  I  was  at  the  end  of  Poet's 
Corner,  having  come  in  late,  but  I  can  never  forget  the 
keen,  piercing  glance  of  his  bright  dark  eye,  or  the  peculiar 
fervour  of  his  words.  From  that  day  I  honoured  him  and 
loved  him  with  an  enthusiasm  I  can  hardly  account  for 
or  understand,  but  it  has  been  a  master-passion  in  my  life. 
It  is  always  my  hope  that  I  may  in  some  after  time  have 
the  joy  of  rendering  some  happy  humble  service  to  the  dear 
saint  of  God  who  has  done  so  much  for  me. 

Your  faithful  servant, 

J.  Andrewes  Reeve. 

Many  a  remote  country  clergyman  can  look  back 
to  the  Confirmation  visits  and  other  visits  of  Dr., 


—1 88s.]  CONFIRMATION  VISITS.  307 

and,  we  must  venture  to  add,  Mrs.  Wordsworth,  as 
bright  little  oases  in  the  midst  of  a  somewhat  dreary 
existence,  when  they  were  refreshed  with  new  ideas, 
when  they  were  established,  strengthened,  and 
settled  in  their  faith,  when  they  were  taught  by  that 
best  of  all  teachers,  example,  the  blessedness  and 
attractiveness  of  a  simple  and  guileless  piety,  and 
when,  if  they  had  any  sense  of  humour,  they  were 
amused  by  some  delicate  stroke  of  that  humour  of 
which  the  bishop  was  brimful.  For  Bishop  Words- 
worth rarely  paid  a  visit  without  doing  all  those 
things. 

Again  the  poetical  and  imaginative  side  of  the 
Bishop's  character,  together  with  his  rich  vein  of 
historical  knowledge,  led  him  to  take  a  vivid  pleasure 
in  objects  of  local  interest,  and,  by  imparting  that 
interest  to  the  dwellers,  to  make  them  happier  in 
their  homes.  The  following  letter  from  the  Rev. 
C.  W.  Markham,  formerly  Rector  of  Saxby,  a  pretty 
village  at  the  foot  of  the  cliff,  near  Barton-on- 
Humber,  will  illustrate  this  point  : — 

In  April,  1875,  the  Bishop,  with  Mrs.  Wordsworth,  paid 
us  a  visit  at  Saxby  for  three  or  four  days,  and  was  im- 
mensely delighted  with  the  wonderful  growth  of  violets  on 
the  hill  behind  our  house.  He  had  occasion  to  write  on 
business  shortly  after,  and  his  letter  ended,  ''  With  kind 
regards  to  Mrs.  Markham,  and  with  agreeable  remem- 
brance of  our  very  pleasant  visit  to  the  violet-crowned 
village  of  Saxby.  I  am,  &c.  You  remember  that  the 
favourite  epithet  of  Athens  was  too-re^aw?." 

Stow,  with  its  magnificent  Norman  fabric,  and  its 
X    2 


loZ  EPISCOPATE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.  [1869— 

association  with  his  great  predecessor,  S.  Hugh, 
Bishop  of  Lincoln,  besides  being  possibly  the  ancient 
Sidnacester  and  mother  church  of  Lincoln,  possessed, 
of  course,  special  attractions  to  him,  and  he  was 
very  anxious  that  the  rector  (Stow  is  a  bishop's 
living)  should  be,  so  to  speak,  in  keeping  with  the 
place. 

In  offering  the  living  to  Canon  Nevile  he  wrote: — 

I  am  not  sure  that  it  is,  as  some  think,  the  ancient  Sidna- 
cester and  mother  church  of  Lincoln,  but  it  is  associated 
with  the  memory  of  one  of  the  greatest  Bishops  of  Lincoln, 
S.  Hugh,  and  his  spirit  would  be  refreshed,  as  would  that 
of  many  good  men,  by  knowing  that  it  was  under  the 
spiritual  charge  of  one  who  would  cherish  its  ancient 
traditions,  and  would  endeavour,  with  God's  help,  to  infuse 
new  life  into  them  by  his  own  pastoral  ministrations. 

And  again,  on  Canon  Nevile's  refusal : — 

Pray  reflect  on  the  history  and  associations  of  the 
place.  At  Stow  we  do  not  want  mere  hand-work  and 
foot-work,  but  heart-work  and  head-work,  I  do  not  like 
to  be  egotistical,  but  I  shall  be  seventy  in  a  few  months, 
and  cannot  think  that  age  in  your  case  is  a  disqualification 
for  such  a  post.    May  it  not  be  rather  a  recommendation  t 

From  these  letters  it  would  appear  that  the  Bishop 
did  not  always  approve  of  the  maxim,  which  however 
he  often  quoted,  "  Solve  senescentem."  The  same 
appears  from  the  following  letter  to  the  late  Rector  of 
Kp worth,  Canon  Dundas  : — 

It  seems  to  me  that  there  is  a  great  mistake  very  cur- 
rent  nowadays,    that  no  good  can  be  done  by  any  one, 


—1885.]      INTEREST  IN  LOCAL  ASSOCIATIONS.  309 

except  by  moving  about  in  a  hurry  and  bustle.     But  we 
know  who  says,  "  In  quietness  shall  be  your  strength." 

Epworth,  like  Stow,  had  a  peculiar  interest  for 
the  bishop,  but  from  associations  of  a  very  different 
kind.  He  was  much  impressed  with  the  beauty 
of  the  epitaph  on  Samuel  Wesley,  composed,  it  is 
thought,  by  his  widow  Susanna,  "  the  mother  of  the 
Wesley s :"  "  Here  lieth  all  that  could  die  of  Samuel 
Wesley,  A.M.,  thirty-nine  years  rector  of  this  parish. 
As  he  lived,  so  he  died,  in  the  true  Catholic  faith  of 
the  Holy  Trinity  in  Unity,  and  that  Jesus  Christ 
was  God  Incarnate,  and  the  only  Saviour  of  man- 
kind." He  quoted  it  in  the  pulpit  at  Epworth 
Church,  and  was  seen  walking  about  the  rectory 
garden  by  himself,  saying  over  and  over  again,  "  As 
he  lived,  so  he  died,"  &c.  When  the  living  was 
offered  to  one  who  had  written  about  the  Wesleys 
and  the  W^esleys'  times,  he  wrote,  "  There  would  be 
a  special  historical  and  poetical  fitness  in  seeing  you 
there  ;"  and  when  he  was  told  that  it  was  accepted, 
"  I  rejoice  in  your  good  news,  and  I  believe  that 
the  spirit  of  Samuel  Wesley,  and  of  Charles  Wesley 
(and,  perhaps,  John)  would  rejoice  in  it."  He 
repeated  the  words  at  the  Institution  in  Lincoln 
Cathedral,  and  there  was  a  gleam  of  humour  in  his 
eye  when  he  said,  "and,  perhaps,  John." 

One  Sunday  morning,  as  he  was  walking  in  the 
pretty  grounds  of  a  country  parsonage,  while  the 
sound  of  the  church  bells  alone  broke  the  calm 
which  is   so   characteristic    of    the    English    village 


l\o  EPISCOPATE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.  [1869— 

Sunday,  he  suddenly  turned  round  to  the  clergy- 
man, and  said,  "  This  is  all  very  delightful ;  will  you 
change  places  with  me  ?  " 

But  the  historical  associations  of  the  past,  and  the 
picturesque  beauty  of  the  present,  never  so  engrossed 
his  mind  as  to  make  him  forget  that  the  main  object 
of  his  visit  was  not  merely  to  perform  official  duties, 
but  also  to  strengthen  the  faith  and  kindle  the  piety 
of  all  with  whom  he  was  thrown  into  contact,  but 
especially  the  inmates  of  the  parsonage.  These  all 
felt,  when  he  was  gone,  that  they  had  been  in  con- 
tact not  merely  with  the  accomplished  scholar  and 
the  learned  divine,  but,  far  more,  with  one  "  whose 
conversation  was  in  heaven,"  and  whose  thorough 
belief  in  the  doctrine,  discipline,  and  system  gene- 
rally of  the  Church  of  England  was  a  part  of  his 
very  life. 

Bishop  Wordsworth's  intense  religious  earnestness 
was  quite  compatible  with  a  playful  humour,  symp- 
toms of  which  were  continually  breaking  out,  even 
in  connection  with  the  gravest  subjects.  Often  this 
humour  was  mistaken  for  simplicity  and  want  of  know- 
ledge of  the  world — as,  for  instance,  when  he  com- 
menced an  address  to  a  number  of  country  clergy,  "In 
that  beautiful  chorus  of  the  Agamemnon,  which  you, 
my  reverend  brethren,  will  of  course  remember;"  when 
he  read  a  speech  he  had  composed  in  modern  Greek 
to  the  Greek  Archbishop  in  the  presence  of  a  mixed 
audience,  the  majority  of  whom  would  have  a  better 
knowledge    of    British    commerce    than    of    Greek 


—1885.]  THE  STUDIES  OF  THE  CLERGY.  311 

literature,  and  then  added,  "  I   will  now  translate  it 
into  English  yZr  the  benefit  of  the  ladies  J  ^ 

One  more  point  must  be  noticed  on  Bishop 
Wordsworth's  relation  to  his  clergy.  Both  by 
example  and  precept  he  strongly  Impressed  upon 
them  the  necessity  of  study.  By  example  ;  for  the 
pressing  duties  of  the  episcopate  did  not  cause  him 
to  relax  his  own  literary  work,  any  more  than  his 
literary  work  caused  him  to  neglect  his  episcopal 
duties.  It  was  a  great  relaxation  and  relief  to  him 
to  write  his  Commentary  on  the  Old  Testament. 
When  he  was  on  a  Confirmation  or  Visitation  tour 
he  was  in  the  constant  habit  of  getting  through 
much  literary  work,  which  was  really  no  laborious 
work  to  him,  before  he  appeared  downstairs  at  the 
breakfast-table.  The  mere  fact  that  his  "  Church 
History  "  was  written  in  his  holidays,  with  little  aid 
from  books,  will  suffice  to  prove  how  little  trouble 
literary  work  gave  him.  For  he  would  undoubtedly 
feel  it  a  duty  to  his  diocese  to  make  his  holiday  a 
real  holiday,  so  that  he  might  go  back  to  his  routine 
work  with  renewed  freshness  and  vigour  ;  but  this 
was  his  w^ay  of  refreshing  himself,  and  his  case  was 
far  from  being  unique.  Readers  of  Sir  Walter  Scott's 
Life  will  remember  a  similar  anecdote  of  his  way  of 
"  refeeding  the  machine  "  by  some  new  literary  effort. 
He  Vvas  not  a  mere  bookworm,  for  he  entered 
thoroughly  Into  the  practical  work  of  his  diocese, 
not  merely  from  a  stern  sense  of  duty,  but  also  from 
a  real  inclination  and  aptitude  for  such  work.     Yet 


312  EPISCOPATE— PRACTICAL  WORK  1NDI0CESE.{\^6()— 

there  is  little  doubt  that  his  happiest  hours  were 
spent  in  his  study.  As  an  illustration  of  this,  one  of 
his  dauo^hters  writes  : — 

"When  at  Easter,  1883,  he  was  obliged  to  come  to 
Harewood  on  account  of  my  mother's  illness,  he  was 
restless  and  unhappy  till  it  was  suggested  that  he  might 
spend  his  leisure  time  in  translating  '  Ethica''  into  English  ; 
he  set  about  it  at  once,  and  enjoyed  the  rest  of  his  visit, 
as  he  always  did  whenever  he  had  any  work  in  hand." 

This  duty  of  systematic  study  he  impressed  strongly 
upon  his  clergy,  whatever  their  sphere  of  labour 
might  be.  He  would  by  no  means  admit  that  the 
care  of  a  large  parish  was  a  sufficient  cause  for  the 
neglect  of  literary  work.  He  instanced  Dr.  Hook, 
who  was  at  once  the  model  parish  priest  and  at  the 
very  same  time  the  voluminous  writer.  "  May  it 
not,"  he  asked,  "be  hoped  that  the  laity  in  populous 
places  may  be  induced  to  relieve  the  clergy  from  the 
care  of  '  serving  tables,'  and  that  the  clergy  may  be 
enabled,  and  be  resolved,  to  devote  themselves  ear- 
nestly to  the  study  of  theology,  the  noblest  of  all 
sciences  ? ''  As  to  the  country  clergy,  they  were 
urged  to  devote  their  leisure  to  study,  among 
other  reasons,  because  they  would  find  it  the 
best  antidote  to  that  spirit  of  melancholy  which  a 
life  of  isolation  is  apt  to  engender,  and  also  as  one 
means  by  which  they  might  do  really  useful  work 
for  the  Church.  This  counsel  he  enforced,  not  so 
much  by  general  recommendations  and  arguments 
(though  these  were  by  no  means   wanting),  as  by 


—1 88 5.]        LITERARY  WORK  OF  THE  CLERGY.  313 


showing  a  special  interest  in  any  particular  work  in 
which  they  might  be  engaged,  and  by  suggesting 
particular  work  to  them.  Sometimes  he  would 
directly  help  a  clergyman  in  his  literary  work  by  a 
contribution  of  his  own.  Thus  he  wrote  a  Preface 
to  Canon  Pennington's  "  Life  of  Erasmus,"  and  an 
Introduction  to  the  Rev.  R.  M.  Heanley's  edition  of 
Bishop  Steere's  Sermons.  Sometimes  he  would 
suggest  some  special  task  to  his  clergy  : — 

"I  was  meditating,"  he  wrote  to  one  of  them,  "a  letter 
to  you,  in  order  to  express  a  desire  that  you  might  be 
induced  to  undertake  to  give  us  a  manual  of  the  history  of 
the  Church  of  England  from  the  Revolution  to  the  present 
time.  Palin's  book,  which  reaches  only  to  171 5,  is  so 
much  blemished  by  party  philippics  against  Bishop  Burnet 
and  everything  Dutch  and  Hanoverian,  that  it  cannot  be 
accepted  as  trustworthy." 

And  on  the  clergyman's  reply  that  he  was  engaged 
on  another  work,  he  at  once  sent  him  valuable  sug- 
gestions and  information  respecting  that  work.  As 
Bishop  Burnet  is  mentioned  in  this  letter,  it  may  be 
added  that,  oddly  enough,  he  was  always  a  favourite 
with  Bishop  Wordsworth  ;  and  the  following  story 
illustrates  the  gentle,  playful  way  in  which  he  would 
strive  to  overcome  what  he  considered  the  prejudices 
of  his  clergy.  One  of  them,  who  took  a  very  different 
view  of  Bishop  Burnet,  was  talking  to  Bishop  Words- 
worth about  the  observance  of  Lent.  "  The  worst 
of  it  is,  my  lord,"  he  said,  "that  the  absence  of 
social  gatherings  in  Lent  makes  it  a  time  of  enjoy- 
ment and  not  of  self-denial  to  me.     I   have  all  the 


31AEPISC0PA  TE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.  [1869— 

more  time  for  reading."  "  Then,"  said  the  Bishop, 
"  I  will  give  you  a  Lenten  penance  ;  spend  this  Lent 
in  trying  to  do  justice  to  Burnet."  And  by  an  early 
post  there  arrived  Bishop  Jebb's  book,  containing  a 
republication  of  the  Lives  of  Hale  and  Rochester,  and 
of  characters  from  Burnet's  "  Own  Times,"  in  which 
some  of  Burnet's  writings  are  highly  praised,  with 
a  note  from  Bishop  Wordsworth:  "Allow  me  to 
recommend  to  you  an  excellent  book  on  an  excellent 
prelate  (though  not  without  blemishes),''  &c.  On 
another  occasion,  "Well,  Mr.  X.,"  he  said,  "what 
are  you  writing  now  ?  "  "I  am  just  now,  my  lord, 
busy  with  an  article  on  Bishop  Andrewes."  "Then 
I  will  send  you  something  that  will  help  you."  And 
by  the  next  post  arrived  a  copy  of  Casaubon's 
"  Ephemerides,"  with  all  the  passages  relating  to 
Bishop  Andrewes  marked  in  pencil  by  the  bishop's 
own  hand.  On  receiving  an  essay  on  Loneliness 
written  by  another  clergyman  of  his  diocese,  he 
wrote  the  follovving  neat  reply  : — 

*  Zimmerman  on  Solitude"  was  a  famous  book,  and 
cheered  the  hearts  of  many  in  its  day,  and  I  hope  that 
"  Baxter  on  Loneliness  "  will  be  equally  successful.  With 
best  remembrances  to  her  who  prevents  yo2i  from  ever 
feeling  lonely,  I  am,  &c. 

Bishop  Wordsworth  also  encouraged  study  by 
answering  letters  on  intellectual  subjects  as  elabo- 
rately as  if  he  had  nothing  but  literary  work  to 
attend  to.     The  followinof  letters  will  illustrate  this  : — 


I 


I 


— 18S5.]       LETTERS  ON  LITERARY  SUBJECTS.  315 


To  the  Rev.  Charles  Turner,  Grasby  V.,  Brigg. 

Rise  holme,  Lincoln,  May  ly,  1873. 
My  dear  Sir, — I  thank  you  in  my  dear  wife's  name 
and  my  own  for  the  beautiful  copy  of  the  beautiful  volume 
of  poems  you  have  sent  us,  and  for  your  kindness  in  writing 
her  name  together  with  mine  in  the  first  page  of  it.  We 
have  been  travelling  about  in  my  visitation  in  Lincoln- 
shire, and  have  just  returned  home  with  thankful  hearts 
after  having  been  in  all  the  large  towns  of  the  county,  and 
on  Monday  we  proceed  (D.V.)  to  the  County  of  Nottingham, 
to  make  a  similar  tour  there.  Your  sweet  songs  breathed 
from  your  quiet  vale  have  been  a  great  refreshment  to  me, 
and  I  have  read  your  verses  with  feelings  like  those  with 
which  one  looks  on  a  calm  and  pure  picture  of  a  Holy 
Family  by  Fra  Angelico,  in  the  picture-gallery,  or  in  the 
church  of  some  bustling  town  in  Italy.  Might  I  venture 
to  ask,  before  it  is  too  late,  whether  you  would  not  be 
induced  to  undertake  some  more  systematic  and  consecu- 
tive poetical  work  .''  I  long  for  a  string  for  your  beads, 
and  for  a  vase  for  your  bouquet  of  flowers,  and  it  has  oc- 
curred to  me  that  you  would  be  doing  great  service  to  the 
faith  if  your  Christian  Muse  would  tune  its  harp  to  sing  to 
us  of  the  inner  spiritual  and  evangelical  meaning  of  the 
history  of  the  Old  Testament,  beginning  with  the  creation 
and  carrying  us  on  from  paradise  to  the  patriarchs  and 
thence  to  Sion  and  the  prophets,  and  to  the  "  waters  of 
Babylon  "  and  the  songs  of  the  return  and  "  the  songs  of 
degrees,"  and  to  the  twilight  of  the  Gospel.  Having 
made  an  effort  to  write  a  Commentary  on  the  Old  Testa- 
ment in  this  spiritual  sense,  I  feel  very  forcibly  how  rich  a 
mine  there  is  there  of  genuine  ore  for  the  refining  hand  of 
the  poet;  or,  to  use  another  figure,  what  a  grand  and  un- 
worked  quarry  of  the  purest  marble  there  is,  from  which 
a    frieze  of   the    fairest   forms  might  spring  forth  under 


ZieEPISCOPA  TE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.  [1869— 

the  creative   hand   of  the  sculptor.     Will  you  not  be  its 
Phidias  ? 

With  our  kind  remembrances  to  Mrs.  C.  Turner, 

I  am  yours  faithfully  and  affectionately, 

C.  Lincoln. 

RiseJiohne,  Jan.  28,  1875. 

My  dear  Sir, — Let  me  wish  you  joy  on  the  publication 
of  your  great  work — the  greatest  of  the  kind  that  has 
appeared  in  England  for  more  than  a  century. 

Your  reward  is  in  another  world,  and  in  the  society  of 
those  pious,  good,  and  learned  men  (may  I  say  it  with 
reverence),  especially  of  him  to  whose  sacred  memory  your 
work  is  inscribed  in  words  of  such  deep  feeling  and  sober 
truth. 

Believe  me,  my  dear  Sir,  with  much  respect. 

Yours  faithfully, 

C.  Lincoln. 
To  the  Rev.  F.  Field,  M.A.,  LL.D., 

Carlton  Terrace,  Heigham,  Norwich. 

The  work  M^as  a  new  edition  of  the  Hexapla  of 
Origen,  and  the  sacred  memory  to  whom  the  work 
is  inscribed  is  that  of  Francis  Martin,  A. A.M.,  Vice- 
Master  of  Trinity  College,  Cambridge,  and  in  honour 
of  Antonio  Maria  Ceriani,  of  the  Ambrosian  College 
Library. 

My  dear  Mr.  Field, — Accept  my  hearty  thanks  for 
your  letter  and  donation  to  the  Southwell  Bishopric. 

I  remember  being  examined  by  you  when  I  was  an 
undergraduate  at  Trinity  ;  and  ever  since  that  time  I  have 
been  under  obligation  to  you  for  much  profit  derived  from 
your  example,  and  from  your  learned  writings.  In  many 
respects  (may  I  take  the  liberty  of  saying  it  ?)  you  have 
been  the  Jerome  of  the  Church  of  England  and  of  the  19th 
century  ;  and  though  I  could  not  venture  to  mention  my- 
self with  his  younger  episcopal  contemporary,  S,  Augustine 


—  1885.]        LE  TTERS  ON  LITER  A  RY  S  U EJECTS.  3 1 7 

yet  I  may  claim  at  least  the  resemblance   of  looking  on 
you  with  the  affectionate  veneration  with  which  the  Bishop 
of  Hippo  regarded  the  venerable  Presbyter  of  Bethlehem. 
Your  gift,  therefore,  is  more  valuable  on  that  account, 
I  am,  yours  sincerely  and  gratefully, 

C.  Lincoln. 
To  the  Rev.  F.  Field,  M.A.,  LL.D. 

Riseholine,  Innocents'  Day. 
My  dear  Mr.  Deane, — Vour  kind  present  of  the  Rev. 
W.  J.  Deane's  edition  of  the  Book  of  Wisdom  ought  not 
to  have  remained  so  long  unacknowledged.     I  am  heartily 
thankful  for  the  publication  of  so  valuable  a  contribution 
in  a  department  of  sacred  literature  which  has  so  long  and 
so  unhappily  remained  unexplored.    As  far  as  I  have  been 
able   to  form   an   opinion,  the  work   you    have  sent    me 
appears  to  be  a  model  of  what  such  an  edition  and  com- 
mentary ought  to  be,  and  I  hope  the  editor  may  be  en- 
couraged to  extend  his  learned  labours  to  the  wisdom  of 
Bar   Sirach.     The  "Ecclesiastical  Books"   (I  wish   they 
had  never  been  called  "  The  Apocrypha,")  served,  I  believe, 
a   most    important    purpose    under   God,    in    comforting, 
cheering,  and   stimulating  faithful   and   courageous    men 
under  persecution  in  the  times  of  Antiochus  Epiphanes, 
the  type  of  Antichrist.     Especially  may  this   have   been 
the   case   with  the  Book  of  Wisdom,  which  perhaps  did 
much  for  the  valiant  mother  of  the  seven  children  whom 
she  joyfully  gave  up  to  die  as  martyrs  in    the    hope   of 
that  resurrection  to  eternal  life  which  is  so  gloriously  and 
eloquently    preached    by   the    author    of    the    Book    of 
Wisdom.     I  am,  &c. 

In  Wisdom  xii.  22,  I  have  sometimes  thought  that  for 
/xvpi6rr)Tc  we  might  read,  perhaps,  /j^erpLOTTjrL. 

To  the  Rev.  G.  Babb,  Asierby  Rectory,  Horncastle. 

Sept.  15,  1871. 
My  dear  Sir, — The  discrepancy  is  an  interesting  one 


3 1 8  EPISCOPA  TE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE,  [i  869— 

which  you  point  out  between  the  Latin  and  English  Canon 
XC.  of  1603.  The  Latin  being  the  original  which  was 
approved  by  the  bishops  and  clergy  seems  to  have  greater 
authority.  The  English  translation  was,  I  believe,  due  to 
Bancroft,  Bishop  of  London,  and  was,  I  think,  the  copy 
received  and  adopted  by  the  Convocation  of  the  Northern 
Province  [see  Wilkins'  "  Concilia,"  iv.,  428).  Certainly  it 
was  the  copy  received  by  the  Church  of  Ireland  in  1634. 

Indeed,  in  all  his  letters  to  his  clergy,  whether  on 
literary  or  parochial  subjects,  the  Bishop  seems  to 
have  grudged  no  time  or  trouble  in  answering  them 
fully.  For  instance,  the  Rev.  Canon  Ebsworth  has 
supplied  us  with  a  letter  of  thirteen  large  pages 
written  by  the  Bishop  when  he  was  asked  to  decide 
in  the  matter  of  an  inscription  containing  a  prayer 
for  the  departed.  The  opinion  appears  in  his  printed 
works,  and  therefore  need  not  be  here  repeated. 
But  two  or  three  letters  on  parochial  subjects  may 
be  quoted  in  illustration  of  the  bishop's  thoughtful- 
ness  for  his  clergy  on  such  points.  Alluding  to  the 
baptism  of  a  young  woman  on  her  deathbed  at 
Swineshead,  he  writes  to  the  Rev.  J.  Holmes : — 

Spridlington  {on  Confirmation  Tour), 
March  11,  1879. 
My  dear  Sir, — I  am  very  thankful  for  the  interesting 
report  in  your  letter  of  the  administration  of  the  Holy 
Sacrament  of  Baptism  under  such  affecting  circumstances 
as  you  describe.  If  the  catechumen  is  still  alive,  pray 
give  her  my  blessing.  As  to  Confirmation,  I  heartily  agree 
with  you.  ...  A  Confirmation,  not  only  in  what  it  is  in 
itself,  but  in  the  precious  preparation  for  it,  and  in  sub- 
sequent teaching  and  graces  after  it,  represents  more  real 
pastoral  and  episcopal  work  than  almost  anything  in  the 


—  1885.]      LETTERS  ON  PAROCHIAL  SUBJECTS.  319 

ministry  of  the  Church.  It  is  hard  work  also  ;  but,  I  say- 
it  with  reverence,  I  do  not  know  whether  there  is  any 
season  in  which  I  should  more  heartily  join  with  Simeon 
in  his  "  Nunc  Dimittis  "  than  in  a  Confirmation  tour. 

At  the  baptism  of  twins,  a  boy  and  a  girl,  in 
Swineshead  Church,  the  godmother  by  mistake  gave 
the  name  of  the  girl  to  the  boy,  and  that  of  the  boy 
to  the  girl.  The  vicar  wrote  to  the  bishop  to  ask  what 
should  be  done,  and  received  the  following  reply  : — 

Riseholme,  Lincoln,  June  30,  187c. 
My  dear  Sir, — I  have  no  hesitation  in"  saying  that 
the  name  intended  respectively  for  the  boy  and  the  girl 
ought  to  be  entered  as  the  name  in  the  baptismal  register. 
To  err  is  a  natural  infirmity,  and  may  be  pardoned  ;  but 
to  give  to  a  boy  a  girl's  name,  and  to  give  a  boy's  name 
to  a  girl,  is  contra  naturani,  and  null  and  void  ab  initio. 
In  such  a  case  as  this  the  good  intention  must  be  taken  to 
supersede  the  erring  act. 

Almost  the  last  act  of  his  episcopate  w^as  to  pre- 
sent his  Commentary  on  the  Bible  (a  costly  work) 
to  every  licensed  curate  in  his  diocese. 

In  touching  upon  the  relations  of  Bishop  Words- 
worth to  the  clergy  it  must  not  be  forgotten  that 
highly  as  he  was  esteemed  by  those  of  his  diocese, 
he  had  hardly  a  less  reputation  among  a  large  sec- 
tion, at  least,  of  the  clergy  in  other  dioceses.  The 
present  writer  was  once  travelling  with  a  number  of 
clergy  who  were  all  strangers  to  him,  and  happened 
to  mention  something  that  the  Bishop  had  said. 
"  Who  is  your  bishop  ? "  they  asked.  "  The  Bishop 
of  Lincoln."  "  Ah !  noble  old  man,"  was  the  uni- 
versal cry.     Some  of  our  readers  will  remember  a 


lioEPISCOPA  TE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.  [1869— 

scene  at  a  Church  Congress  when  the  Bishop  of 
Lincoln  was  speaking  on  the  Papal  question.  The 
bell  had  rung  twice,  but  when  Bishop  Wordsworth 
had  plunged  into  so  favourite  a  topic  he  took  no 
notice  of  bells,  and  no  one  thought  for  a  moment 
of  stopping  him,  or  even  of  saying  "  Go  on  ;"  they 
merely  listened  with  silent  respect  to  what  he  had 
to  say.  The  estimation  in  which  he  was  held  by  the 
clergy  of  other  dioceses  is  shown  in  a  letter  kindly 
sent  to  us  by  the  Rev.  J.  H.  Stephenson,  Rector  of 
Lympsham,  Weston-super-Mare,  who  is  of  opinion 
that  "  no  man  could  ever  listen  to  his  utterances,  or 
peruse  his  writings,  without  feeling  that  he  added 
vast  additional  lustre  to  an  already  immortal  name." 

As  the  Bishop  was  extraordinarily  liberal  with  his 
money  himself,  so  he  deeply  appreciated  instances  of 
liberality  in  other  clergymen.  Canon  Pretyman's 
munificence  in  the  matter  of  the  Mablethorpe  Con- 
valescent Home  and  other  good  works,  the  gene- 
rosity of  Canon  Spranger  White  and  others  in  the 
matter  of  the  "  Scholee,"  are  two  instances  which 
especially  occur  to  us ;  and  many  others  both  of 
clergy  and  laity  might  be  found.^ 

It  is  now  time  to  remember  that  there  are  other 
'members  of  the  Church  besides  the  clergy,  and  that 
Bishop    Wordsworth's   relations    to    the    "faithful 

'  While  these  pages  are  being  printed,  one  of  them,  the  Rev. 
Canon  F.  H.  Sutton,  whose  taste  in  ecclesiastical  art  almost 
amounted  to  genius,  and  whose  personal  piety  lent  additional 
beauty  to  his  unusual  gifts,  has  passed  away. 


— 18S5.]     THE  BISHOFS  RELATIONS  TO  THE  LAITY.   321 

laity,"  as  he  loved  to  call  them,  must  not  pass  un- 
noticed. It  is  sufficient  to  mention  the  names  of  Sir 
Charles  Anderson  and  Lady  Welby- Gregory  as 
vouchers  for  the  competency  and  credibility  of  the 
testimony  given  in  the  two  following  letters : — 

Lea,  Gainsborough,  July  8,  1886, 

Dear  Canon  Overton, — I  feel  it  very  difficult  ade- 
quately to  express  the  admiration  I  had  for  our  late  dear 
bishop  as  a  diocesan  and  my  affection  for  him  as  a  man. 
I  never  knew  one  who  combined  such  charitable  feelings  to- 
wards those  who  differed  from  him,  with  the  greatest  courage 
in  avowing  his  own  convictions.  There  was  no  flinching 
from  expressing  his  opinion  on  disputed  points  of  doctrine 
and  backing  them  with  the  authority  his  deep  and  extensive 
learning  could  supply. 

He  never  stooped  to  flatter  rank,  or  courted  popularity  by 
pandering  to  the  taste  for  vulgar  adulation.  I  have  received 
from  him  at  various  times  kindness  and  sympathy  which  I 
shall  never  forget.  I  always  felt  that  had  I  been  anxious  and 
doubtful  on  any  private  personal  matter,  I  could  have  gone 
to  him  without  reserve  or  hesitation  ;  in  fact,  I  felt  him  to  be 
a  real  father  in  God.  He  was,  to  my  mind,  as  grand  a  speci- 
men of  a  bishop  of  the  Church  of  England  as  ever  existed 
before  or  after  the  Reformation. 

One  year  when  my  late  rector  was  ill  I  wrote  to  the  bishop, 
expressing  fear  there  would  be  no  service  on  Ash  Wednes- 
day. The  bishop  came  by  train  to  Lea  with  his  robes  in  a 
carpet  bag  and  performed  the  office  of  the  day  and  preached 
an  extempore  sermon  ;  and  I  have  heard  of  other  instances 
of  the  same  kind. 

I  never  had  any  lengthened  correspondence  with  him — 
how  could  it  be  expected  I  should  when  he  had  such  constant 
diocesan  work  and  writing  to  his  clergy  and  officials  ?  but 
1  send  you  two  letters  which  he  wrote  me  under  severe 

Y 


322  EPISCOPA  TE-PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DI0CESE.\_i%6()— 

domestic  anxiety  and  sorrow,  full  of  sympathy  and  comfort ; 
and  many  others  besides,  I  know,  will  rise  up  and  call  him 
blessed  for  similar  consolation  administered  from  the  same 
beneficent  hand. 

Yours  faithfully, 

C.  H.  J.  Anderson. 

Denton,  Ma7'ch  15,  1886. 

Dear  Canon  Overton, — Your  request  that  I  should  try 
briefly  to  give  you  my  impression  of  the  revered  Bishop 
Wordsworth  of  Lincoln  in  some  ways  lands  me  in  more  than 
usual  difficulties. 

It  would  be  easy  merely  to  echo  what  I  feel  will  be  the 
universal  testimony  as  to  that  almost  unique  combination  of 
dignity, simplicity,  and  tenderness,  which  made  up  so  beauti- 
ful a  type  of_/"^7///^^r//;/£'j'j".  Surely  never  was  there  one  who, 
taken  as  it  were  out  of  the  closet  of  the  learned  scholar  and 
commentator,  would  at  once  expand  as  he  did  into  a  sweet- 
ness of  sympathy  and  of  reverent  and  patient  love  for  the 
most  ignorant  and  often  least  attractive,  which  was  like  both 
blossom  and  fragrance  to  those  who  came  within  its  wide 
range. 

I  say  reverent  advisedly;  for  was  not  that  the  true  secret 
of  his  dignity  .''  No  poorest,  roughest,  dullest  child  was  to 
be  allowed  to  suppose  itself  anything  less  than  a  shrine  and 
image  of  the  adorable  God  of  holiness.  No  sinner  or 
sufferer  needing  his  pastoral  offices  or  sympathy  was  to  be 
allowed  for  one  moment  to  think  of  him  except  as  em- 
phatically a  minister  ("  Ourselves  your  servants  for  Jesus' 
sake").  And  that  brought  an  answering  reverence,  a  fear 
less,  willing  homage,  which  this  truly  apostolic  humility 
must  ever  produce. 

But  besides  this  there  were  other  characteristics  most 
difficult  to  put  into  words. 

Keen  as  was  his  interest  in  all  the  concerns,  movements, 
and  events  of  the  present  day,  I  never  could  resist  the  feel- 
ing that  his  natural  standpoint  might  be  summed  up  thus  : 


— 1885.]    THE  BISHOP'S  RELATIONS  TO  THE  LAITY.     323 

he  was  on  a  visit  to  the  nineteenth  century,  but  at  home  in 
the  sixteenth.  It  used  sometimes  to  be  noticed  with  a  smile 
how  naturally  a  conversation  would  lead  to  his  introducing 
something  which  happened  "  three  centuries  ago  ;"  and  on 
one  occasion  when  an  officer  quartered  in  Ireland  was  in- 
troduced to  him,  his  very  first  words  were  "  Three  centuries 
ago,"  and  he  went  on  to  describe  some  striking  event  at  the 
time  which  present  troubles  in  Ireland  seemed  to  recall.  And 
almost  every  question  that  could  be  broached  found  an  echo 
of  some  kind  in  his  vast  treasure-house  of  learning. 

It  has  been  questioned  whether  he  repudiated  entirely  the 
idea  of"  cremation."  I  well  remember  once  saying  that  I 
thought  the  most  impressive  funeral  I  had  seen  was  one  at 
sea.  He  said  then  with  much  emphasis  that  he  shrank 
utterly  from  anything  but  "  Christian  burial  "  in  the  earth 
itself.  But  with  all  his  tendency  to  represent  and  dwell 
upon  what  seemed  to  him  the  golden  ages  of  the  Church, 
whether  in  primitive  days  or  in  times  nearer  to  our  own,  he 
often  took  one  by  surprise  with  the  warmth  of  his  response 
to  forms  of  thought  and  expression  which  it  might  have 
been  supposed  would  repel  him,  or  at  least  seem  but  needless 
or  obscure,  if  not  misleading.  He  was  ever  ready  with  the 
warmest  encouragement  for  thoughts  on  great  subjects, 
although,  to  a  scholar,  crude  and  disjointed  and  full  of  signs 
of  ignorance  and  defect  of  training.  He  used  to  say  "  Let 
us  speak  what  is  given  us  in  all  simplicity  and  be  ready  for 
correction  ;  what  matter  so  that  we  be  teachable  to  the  end 
and  faithful  to  our  trust  ?  " 

One  of  the  last  things  he  said  to  me  w^as  "  We  want  more 
books  like  .  .  .  ,  "  meaning  more  suggestions  on  the  deeper 
roots  of  doctrinal  structure,  and  their  connection  with  prin- 
ciples and  facts  admitted  more  or  less  widely  in  the  secular 
or  scientific  world. 

Yours  very  truly, 

Victoria  Welby  Gregory. 

Mr.  Lindley,  a  clerk  in  a  bank,  sends  us  a  letter 

Y    2 


Zi\EPISCOPA  TE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOC E  SB. li%6()— 

describing  the  courtesy  and  hospitality  of  the  Bishop 
and  Mrs.  Wordsworth  to  himself  and  his  fellow 
Church-workers  ;  the  Rev.  E.  Weigall,  an  account  of 
his  thoughtful  kindness  to  a  poor  woman  at  Froding- 
ham  ;  the  Rev.  Canon  Hodgkinson,  a  report  of  his 
stirring  address  to  a  body  of  working  men,  upon 
which  class  the  Church  in  Gainsborough  has  obtained 
a  remarkable  hold.  But  it  is  obviously  impossible 
to  dwell  at  length  upon  these  and  other  testimonies, 
which  have  been  kindly  sent  to  us,  of  the  late  Bishop 
of  Lincoln's  work  in  his  great  diocese.  We  must 
be  content  to  quote  the  following  general  evidence 
as  to  the  feelings  of  the  diocese  at  large. 

When  the  Bishop's  portrait  was  presented  to  him 
in  1879^  (taken  in  his  Convocation  robes,  because 
"  that  was  the  character  he  wished  to  be  per- 
petuated in,  doing  what  he  could  very  humbly  and 
feebly  to  maintain  the  synodical  character  of  the 
Church"),  the  High  Sheriff  of  Lincolnshire  (the 
present  Earl  of  Winchilsea)  in  making  the  pre- 
sentation, expressed  what  was  really  felt  by  all  when 
he  said,  "  This  diocese  has  been  blest  with  many 
devout,  learned,  and  wise  bishops,  but  the  fame  of 
your  own  deeds  and  varied  learning  has  passed 
far  beyond  the  limits  of  England,  and  we  are  equally 
proud  to  possess  a  bishop  at  once  so  distinguished, 
and  whose  piety,  devotion,  and  liberality,  and  the  zeal 
with  which  you  have  discharged  the  laborious  duties  of 
this  vast  diocese,  have  been  a  most  valuable  example." 
''  By  Edwin  Long,  Esq.,  R.A. 


—  1885.]  MISCELLANEOUS  LETTERS.  325 

Some  letters  have  been  received  which  are  too 
interesting  and  too  characteristic  of  Bishop  Words- 
worth to  be  omitted,  and  yet  can  hardly  be  grouped 
under  any  special  head.  The  following  one  is  a 
good  specimen  of  his  readiness  to  give  spiritual 
direction,  as  a  true  "father  in  God"  and  a  sound 
casuist,  to  one  who  wrote  to  consult  him  as  to 
whether  a  Churchwoman  could  consistently  attend 
Presbyterian  places  of  worship  when  they  were  the 
only  accessible  means  of  grace  : — 

Risekolme,  Lincoln, 
Mo7idayin  WJiitsim  Week,  1882. 

My  dear  Blanche  Dunda?, — Your  question  is  rather  a 
hard  one.  On  the  one  hand  there  is  to  be  considered  the 
evil  arising  from  lack  of  spiritual  communion  in  prayer  and 
praise  and  other  offices  of  public  worship. 

On  the  other,  there  is  danger  of  seeming  to  give  counte- 
nance to  a  form  of  Church  Government  which  was  not  sanc- 
tioned by  the  Holy  Apostles  and  was  unknown  to  Christen- 
dom for  fifteen  hundred  years,  and  was  set  up  in  opposition 
to  that  other  form,  the  Episcopal,  which  was  universally 
received  in  the  Church  for  that  time. 

On  the  whole,  I  am  of  opinion  that  it  would  not  be  right 
to  receive  the  Holy  Communion  from  the  hands  of  anyone 
who  has  not  been  episcopally  ordained  and  has  not  received 
an  apostolical  commission  to  administer  it.  But  I  am  more 
doubtful  as  to  joining  with  him  publicly  in  prayer,  and  as 
to  listening  to  his  sermons.  Prayer  and  preaching  are  not 
necessarily  priestly  acts,  and,  if  they  are  not  done  in  wilful 
schism  (as  I  do  not  suppose  they  are  in  the  case  mentioned 
by  you),  and  if  there  is  no  episcopally  ordained  minister 
to  whom  you  can  resort  for  such  public  religious  exercises, 
I  should  not  be  disposed  to  refuse  to  join  in  them,  provided 


326  EPISCOPATE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.{iZ(i^— 

you  are  assured  that  the  anti-Catholic  dogmas  of  extreme 
Calvinism  (such  as  the  denial  of  universal  redemption  by 
Christ)  are  not  obtruded  in  them. 

The  next  is  a  specimen  of  the  singularly  graceful 
way  in  which  the  Bishop  would  write  what  may 
be  termed  a  letter  of  compliment.  It  was  written 
in  acknowledgment  of  birthday  presents — Bishop 
Andrewes'  '' Devotions,"  palm-branches  from  Al- 
giers, a  water-colour  of  a  boat  on  the  Witham,  with 
the  cathedral  on  the  hill  above  : — 

To  Miss  Ruth  Venables. 

Riseholme,  Oct.  30,  1883. 
My  dear  Ruth, — Your  beautiful  picture  is  not  only  a 
welcome  birthday  present,  for  which  I  heartily  thank  you, but 
it  preaches  to  me  a  very  good  birthday  sermon,  for  which  I 
ought  to  be  still  more  thankful  ;  and  I  hope  that  I  may  be 
allowed  in  thanking  you  for  your  loving  gift,  to  join  my 
grateful  acknowledgments  to  your  dear  father  and  mother 
for  their  offerings  of  affection  which  accompanied  yours. 
In  your  picture  1  seem  to  see  myself  in  the  little  boat  sail- 
ing along  on  the  waters  of  the  River  Witham,  and  carried 
by  the  wind,  and  soon  passing  away  and  seen  no  more, 
and  contrasted  with  the  solid  and  stately  fabric  of  Lincoln 
Cathedral  above,  remaining  unchanged  for  centuries  and 
representing  the  perpetuity  of  Christ's  Church,  looking 
down  from  its  serene  altitude  on  the  changeful  waters  of 
the  world  flowing  below  it  ;  and  your  dear  father  [Precentor 
Venables]  reminds  me  by  his  precious  gift  of  his  edition  of 
Bishop  Andrewes'"  Devotions  "  that  if  my  little  boat  is  to  be 
navigated  safely  and  to  sail  onward  in  joy,  it  must  be  by 
the  help  of  the  fair  winds  of  the  breath  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
given  to  daily  prayer;  and  then  I  am  cheered  by  your  dear 
mother's    present  of  the  palm-branclics,   the  emblems  of 


—  1 885-]  MISCELLANEOUS  LETTERS.  327 

victory,  with  the  glad  assurance  that,  when  the  voyage  of 
hfe  is  over,  we  may  anchor  together  in  the  calm  haven  of 
everlasting  peace,  and  crown  the  stern  of  our  little  boat  with 
unfading  chaplets  {Puppibus  etlceti  nautce  imposuere  coronas) 
of  glory,  given  to  us  by  our  Divine  Master  and  Judge.  May 
I  send  you  my  love  and  blessing  ? 

The  next  is  of  a  similar  character.  It  was  written 
the  day  after  the  baptism  of  his  first  grandson  from 
the  chancery  by  the  bishop  in  the  old  black  basalt 
Minster  font,  which  had  been  decked  with  snow- 
drops, &c. :  ^ — 

RiseJiolnie,  Feb.  25,  1882. 

My  dear  Mrs.  Venables, — Would  you  have  the  good- 
ness to  thank  for  us  all  the  loving  hearts  and  fair  hands 
which  added  so  much  to  our  happiness  yesterday  by  the 
beautiful  adornment  of  the  font  in  the  cathedral  with  pure 
white  spring  flowers  and  by  the  cross  of  snowdrops,  which 
we  hope  and  pray  may  be  an  emblem  of  the  holiness  of  the 
life  of  those  two  dear  little  ones  who  were  signed  in  their 
foreheads  with  the  Cross  of  Him  who  will,  we  trust,  ever  live 
in  their  hearts. 

These  specimens  of  Dr.  Wordsworth's  miscel- 
laneous correspondence  would  not  be  complete  with- 
out the  insertion  of  some  of  his  letters  to  his  own 
children,  which  serve  to  illustrate  the  perfect  con- 
fidence which  always  subsisted  between   father  and 

child  :— 

Cloisters,  Dec.  6,  1867  \Jiis  weddiiig-dayl. 
My  very  dear  Daughters,— If  there  were  no  other 

^  The  two  eldest  children  of  his  son-in-law,  Chancellor  Leeke 
were  baptized  on  two  successive  S.  Matthias'  Days  in  Lincoln 
Cathedral.  On  the  first  of  these  two  days  a  little  daughter  of 
Canon  Crowfoot  was  also  baptized. 


■^:,2Z  EPISCOPATE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.  [1869- 

fruits  of  this  happy  day  than  your  love  it  would  be  a 
blessed  day  ;  but  it  has  brought  with  it  so  many  other 
benefits — like  a  tree  with  its  many  boughs  and  branches 
and  twigs  bearing  a  never-failing  supply  of  most  delicious 
apples  (ask  Aunt  L —  about  the  meaning  of  apples  in 
the  Canticles),  that  we  may  well  join  together  and  kneel 
side  by  side  under  its  shade,  and  bless  God  for  planting 
it,  and  allowing  it  to  grow  and  flourish  for  so  many  years. 
May  God  bless  you  all,  both  present  and  absent,  is  the 
hearty  prayer  of      Your  affectionate  father  and  mother. 

This  letter  refers   to   the  decoration  of  his  private 

chapel : — 

Riseholme,  Aug.  22,  1870. 

My  dear  E., — I  am  not  the  less  thankful  for  your 
letter  because  I  have  not  answered  it,  nor  am  I  ungrateful 
to  Dr.  Benson,  tell  him,  for  his  welcome  epistle.  He  will 
be  glad  to  hear  that  something  was  done  on  Friday  for 
the  Theological  college  ;  and  say  with  our  love  that  we 
hope  he  will  be  able  to  come  to  us  for  the  adjourned 
meeting.  Our  German  artist,  Herr  Maevius  (no  descendant 
of  Qui  Bavinm  non  odit  ainet  tiia  cannina,  Maevi)  is  a  very 
modest,  intelligent,  and  grave  man,  and  we  think  that  you, 
my  dear  E — ,  will  be  pleased  with  the  manner  in  which  he 
has  done  his  work.  He  has  a  wonderful  gift  of  sketching 
things  from  ideas  in  his  head,  without  any  drawing  before 
him.  Wc  are  all  delighted  with  your  delights  [in  a  sojourn 
at  the  Lakes],  and  feel  that  there  is  such  a  thing,  especially 
for  us  old  folks,  as  travelling  by  proxy,  and  as  climbing  up 
mountains  with  other  people's  feet,  and  seeing  beautiful 
sights  with  their  eyes. 

With  our  loves  to  you  all, 

I  am,  your  affectionate  father, 

C.  Lincoln. 

Give  our  kindest  regards  to  the  l^ishop  of  Ely  and  Mrs. 
I^rowne,  and  much  cousinly  love  and  thanks  to  Mrs. 
Harrison. 


—  1 885-]  LETTERS  TO  HIS  CHILDREN.  329 

Aszcardf,  FolkingJiain,  Oct.  17,  1873. 

My  dear  E., — We  were  glad  to  hear  of  A — 's  safe 
arrival,  and  hope  that  S — is  none  the  worse  for  the  journey. 
We  had  a  very  interesting  day  yesterday  at  Osbournby ; 
about  thirty  clergy  were  present,  and  communicated  at 
the  church  opening.  The  editor  of  the  Times  was  one  of 
the  guests  here  when  we  arrived  ;  also  Mrs.  Sherwin 
Gregory;  Colonel  and  Mrs.  Reeve,  Miss  Montgomery  ;  ■• 
and  a  lady  celebrated  for  her  diamonds,  Mrs.  Leigh  of 
Luton  (Beds.). 

The  only  child  of  the  Whichcote's,  a  girl  of  about 
seventeen,  is  an  antiquarian,  and  seems  to  have  a  good 
deal  in  her.    There  is  one  room  here,  called  the  Oak  Room, 

with   beautiful  Gainsboroughs,  &c.,  which   Mr. (the 

editor)  values  at  30,000/. 

Mr.  Deedes  dined  here  yesterday,  and  kindly  offers  to 
bring  us  back  from  Ancaster  to  this  place  after  our  visit, 
for  a  confirmation,  to  Grantham,  for  which  we  are  about  to 
start  at  ten  o'clock.  We  had  large  Confirmations  at  Horn- 
castle,  Boston,  and  Spalding,  where  a  party  of  church- 
workers  were  invited  to  meet  us.  At  Boston  we  had  the 
mayor  among  the  guests,  [and]  Dr.  Pattenden,  of  the  Gram- 
mar School,  whose  son  surpassed  Miss  Rogers  in  one 
thing,  in  the  Oxford  Local  Examinations,  and  Mr.  Garfit. 
On  Monday,  after  Ely,  we  hope  to  have  a  peep  at  Aunt  L — . 

Your  loving  father, 

C.  Lincoln. 

I  do  think  it  luroiig  to  take  a  vow  of  celibacy,  notwith- 
standing all  \.h&feti7igo^  S.  Etheldreda,  and  am  glad  to 
have  an  opportunity  of  saying  so. 

To  HIS  Daughter  Priscilla. 

Stanford-in-the-  Vale, 

March  30,  1868. 
.  .  .  Will  you  tell  Miss ,  with  my  very  kind  regards, 

^  Authoress  of  "Misunderstood." 


330  EPISCOPA  TE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.\\%e^~ 

that  I  do  not  forget  her  wishes  with  regard  to  the  paper. 
.  .  .  There  is  a  httle  leaven  of  pride  in  [it]  which,  unless 
it  is  purged  out,  will  assuredly  leaven  the  whole  lump, 
according  to  the  warning  twice  repeated  of  another  Apostle 
(i  Cor.  V.  6  ;  Gal.  v.  9),  whose  "  wisdom,"  given  from  above, 
is  acknowledged  by  S.  Peter  (2  Peter  iii.  15).  Spiritual 
pride  is  the  very  nra^X^  Bta^oXov  against  which  the  Apostle 
warned  the  Christian  bishop,  S.  Timothy  (i  Tim.  iii.  6,  7  ; 
cp.  2  Tim.  ii.25,  26),and  sisters  in  Christian  homes  specially 
need  to  be  on  their  guard  against  it.  It  was  to  the 
"  pinnacle  of  the  Temple "  in  "  the  Holy  City "  that  the 
Tempter  carried  our  Lord  when  he  wished  to  make  Him 
fall  by  the  subtlest  of  all  temptations.  May  God  bless 
you,  my  dear  P — . 

To  THE  Same. 

RiseJioh7ie,  Oct.  10,  1870. 
I  have  been  using  your  beautiful  present '  for  a  week, 
and  have  never  thanked  you  for  it ;  but  you  will  know  the 
reason — that  my  tongue  and  pen  have  hardly  any  rest, 
except  when  I  am  asleep.  It  is  a  great  pleasure  to  me, 
my  very  dear  child,  to  have  your  remembrance  of  me  always 
before  me  in  delivering  the  charge,  and  I  know  that  I  have 
the  prayers  of  the  giver  to  help  me  on  in  my  work. 
Indeed,  if  I  had  not  had  a  supernatural  supply  of  strength 
vouchsafed  to  me  by  our  merciful  Heavenly  Father,  I  must 
have  fainted  and  failed  long  ago.  But  He  has  lent  me 
wings  and  enabled  me  to  fly. 

To  THE  Same. 

BurgJiley  House,  Stamford, 

Feb.  28,  1 87 1. 
It  was  a  great  pleasure  to  me  to  receive  your  letter,  and 
to  find  that  your  heart  was  with  us,  my  dear  child,  at  that 
eventful  time,  and  to  know  that  I  liave  the  help  of  your 

*  A  sermon-case. 


-1 88s.]  LETTERS  TO  HIS  CHILDREN.  331 

prayers,  which  I  need  more  and  more  as  old  age  comes  on, 
and  the  trials  of  the  Church  seem  to  be  thickening  more 
and  more  about  us. 

We  met  with  great  kindness  at  Cambridge  ;  but  it  was  a 
melancholy  thing  to  reflect  that,  while  the  University  and 
the  Colleges  are  increasing  in  material  grandeur  and 
splendour,  their  inner  spiritual  life  seems  to  be  becoming 
more  and  more  feeble  and  to  be  languishing  away.  But  I 
suppose  it  is  intended  that  we  should  not  set  our  affections 
on  any  external  beauty  and  glory  of  ecclesiastical  or  civil 
institutions,  and  should  learn  more  and  more  to  hold  com- 
munion with  the  unseen,  and  to  have  our  conversation  in 
Heaven.  .  .  .  God  bless  you,  my  very  dear  child. 

Alton  Towers,  Ckeadle, 

Aug.  8,  1872. 

We  have  had  a  long  and  successful  day  in  this  beautiful 
place — thc'Earl  of  Shrewsbury's,  who  has  gathered  together 
a  very  large  number  of  distinguished  persons  to  take  part 
in  the  festival  of  the  inauguration  of  one  of  Mr.  Woodard's 
wonderful  schools  for  middle  classes.  .  .  .  The  Bishop  of 
Lichfield  and  Mrs.  Selwyn  were  here  in  the  house,  and  we 
have  had  a  great  deal  of  interesting  talk  with  the  celebrated 
Robert  Browning,  who  is  staying  in  the  house,  to  say 
nothing  of  Lord  Salisbury,  Loid  Nelson,  Lord  R.  Cavendish, 
Mr.  Beresford  and  Lady  Mildred  Hope,  &c.  Now  when 
are  you  coming  home  ?  Pray  write  me  a  line  and  say. 
May  God  bless  you,  my  dear,  dear  girl.  We  return  to 
Riseholme  to-morrow^  and  it  is  nearly  time  to  dress  for 
dinner.     Ought  I  to  go  to  Cologne  1     Do  tell  me. 

RiseJiobne,  Sept.  2,  1873. 

We  very  often  think  of  you,  and  should  be  thankful  to 
have  you  here,  though  I  am'very  silent  as  to  letter-writing. 
When  I  have  retired  to  the  Wolds  I  hope  to  do  better. 

We  have  had  a  very  interesting  visit  to  Scotland,  and  I 
wish  that  some  of  your  sisters  may  have  had  time  to  write 
a  journal    of  it.      Almost   all    the  places  we  visited — S. 


332  EPISCOPATE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DI0CESE.{_i%6g^ 

Andrew's,  Perth,  Edinburgh,  Stirling — are  full  of  records  of 
horrors,  and  it  would  be  well  to  show  how  Divine  retribution 
in  almost  all  cases  followed  the  perpetration  of  them. 

Then  the  religious  condition  of  Scotland  at  this  time  is 
full  of  instruction  as  to  the  democratic  results  of  Presby- 
terianism  and  Puritanism.  I  feehmore  and  more  persuaded 
that  the  world  will  see  a  greater  development  of  the  two 
forms  of  Antichristianism,  Infidel  and  Papal,  which  will 
act  and  react  upon  one  another  to  the  dissolution  of  civil 
society  and  destruction  of  Governments.  But  you  will  say 
that  I  used  to  talk  about  this  ten  years  ago. 

Rise  ho  line,  Oct.  ii,  1881. 
.  .  .  You  say  that  Leeds  could  not  have  been  more  en- 
thusiastic for  Mr.  Gladstone    if  he  had  been  the  Queen. 
The  fact  is — in  idolizing  him,  who  is  the  impersonation  of 
the  People's  Will,  they  are  worshipping  themselves.     The 
Leeds  demonstration  was  a  general  fete  of  people-worship 
by  the  people  themselves  as  their  own  priests  and  deity. 
To  Mrs.  Leeke. 
Risehohiie,  Lincoln,  Dec.  29,  1878. 
I  have  been  trying  to  write  two  lines  for  mama's  New 
Year's  pocket-book.'     Will  these  do  .'' 

Ouadraginta  anni  rapido  fugcrc  voluto 
Carior  et  semper  carior  usque  manes. 

Horkstow,  March  8,  1881. 
*  *  *  *  ^ 

Tell  Edward,  with   my  love,  that  what   in  my  opinion 

England  needs  more  almost  than  anything  is  missions  to 

the  rich  and  noble,  who  are  really  more  to  be  pitied  than 

the  poor.     They  mean  well,  but  they  have  so  many  temp- 

'  His  regular   annual  custom.     His  daughter,  Mrs.  Trebeck, 
writes  :  "  Some  of  the  inscriptions  in  our  New  Year's  pocket-books 
are  most  characteristic.     I  give  two  of  mine  (Mary  Trebeck) : — 
1863.  Maria,  non  amara 

Sed  apta  amari. 
1874  (the  year  of  my  marriage)  Amara  amoris  amanda," 


—1885.]  LETTER  TO  LADY  HAREWOOD.  333 

tations  and  worldly  friends  that  it  requires  great  courage 
in  them  to  be  witnesses  to  Christ  in  their  households  by 
family  prayer,  and  saying  grace  at  dinner.  You  will  re- 
member Burke's  noble  sentences  about  the  "  miserable, 
poor,  rich  people,"  and  the  duty  of  the  Church  of  England 
to  them.  {See  Burke's  "  Reflections  on  the  French  Revo- 
lution.'O 

4:  #  *  *  * 

I  am,  your  loving  father, 

C.  Lincoln. 

To  these  we  may  add  a  letter  to  a  lady,  to  whose 

kindness,  as  w^ell  as  that  of  her  husband,  the  Bishop 

was  deeply  indebted,  especially  in  his  latter  days : — 

Riseliolme,  Lincoln^  Oct.  20,  1882. 

My  dear  Lady  Harewood, — Your  letter  has  come  as 
a  very  pleasant  refreshment  to  me,  in  the  midst  of  my 
seven  days'  visitation  of  this  diocese. 

I  cannot  say  how  much  I  owe  to  Harewood  for  the  quiet 
time  I  have  had  there  for  the  last  three  years,  and  I  am 
amply  rewarded  for  my  work  there  by  finding  that  it  is  of 
the  least  service  to  you  and  to  others  likeminded.  I  am 
not  without  hope  that  the  volume  produced  there  last 
summer,  and  now  in  the  press,  may  not  be  without  interest 
to  you  as  dealing  with  many  questions  which  are  now 
being  revived,  and  are  pressing  for  a  solution  in  our  own 
times. 

I  heartily  wish  that  you  could  give  a  good  report  of 
yourself ;  but  will  you  pardon  me  for  saying  that  in  order 
to  work  you  must,  I  think,  be  content  to  allow  yourself 
more  rest  ?  I  am  glad  to  hear  of  the  mission  at  Eccup  ;  if 
there  is  no  other  prospect  of  a  Confirmation  after  it,  I  would 
(if  you  could  have  me)  make  a  point  of  coming  for  one. 

My  dear  wife  (who  has  caught  a  bad  cold)  desires  her 
best  love  with  mine,  and 

I  am,  yours  affectionately, 

C.  Lincoln. 


334 EPISCOPA TE—PRA CTICA L  WORK INDIOCESEliZeg— 


The  deep  interest  which  Englishmen  will  ever 
feel  in  that  Christian  hero,  General  Gordon,  is  a 
sufficient  reason  for  adding  the  following  letters  : — 

Jerusalem,  June  9,  1883. 

My  dear  Lord  Bishop, — That  I  owe  your  lordship  so 
much  must  be  my  excuse  for  writing  to  you,  but  your 
Commentary  has  been  of  much  service  to  me,  and  I  feel 
sure  that  you  are  interested  in  these  parts. 

I  send  you  two  sketches  :  one  of  the  boundary  of  Judah 
and  Benjamin,  which  I  think  decides  the  question  of  Zion. 
It  is  remarkable  that  all  Bible  maps  give  Benjamin  all 
Jerusalem.  The  question  of  boundary  turns  on  the  where- 
abouts of  En-shemesh,  but  Septuagint  has  Boeth  samys, 
and  also  has  same  name  for  the  place  where  King  Amaziah 
saw  the  King  of  Israel  in  the  face.  Kh.  el  Sama  seems  to 
me  to  be  the  Boeth  samys  and  En-shemesh,  and  gives  Judah 
the  Zion  Hill.  Zion  is  the  Church,  the  Body.  With  respect 
to  the  other  sketch  of  Skull  Hill,  I  traced  the  map  from  the 
Ordnance  map  of  1864-5,  and  it  is  also  remarkable  that  so 
little  attention  has  been  paid  to  the  skull-like  form  of  Jere- 
miah's grotto  hill  ;  also  to  where  victims  were  slain,  viz.  a 
very  altar  for  so  many  years. 

Your  lordship  saw  so  many  deep  things  in  the  Scriptures, 
which  you  just  touched  on,  that  it  will  not  astonish  [you] 
to  find  the  law  was  in  the  inward  parts  (Zuchoth)"  of  the 
figure.  We  are  children  from  our  mother  Church.  The 
West  Hill  is  the  bad  hill,  over  against  Zion,  the  good  hill. 
Saul,  through  Jonathan,  took  entire  possession  of  West 
Hill,  but  he  could  not  touch  the  East  Hill.  Truth  in  David 
alone  could  take  that. 

You   know  Kaminos'in  Numbers'*  (Zimri  and  Cozbi), 

7  ;^p"12J,  tsukolh,  angusiice. 

"  This  evidently  refers  to  the  LXX.,  Num.  xxv.  8,  where  the 
A.V.  reads  tent.  dariXOcv  ottiVw  tov  avOpuiTTOV  Tov  'Icrpa-r]\iTov  £ts 
Tryv  Kafxivov. 


—1885.]     LETTERRS  FROM  GENERAL  GORDON.  335 

Nehemiah's  tower  of  furnaces  (which  should  be  ovens), 
Josephus'  women's  towers,  Herodias'  palace,  all  at  West 
Gate.  Tophet  is  significant  of  the  world,  a  place  of  pleasure 
over  Hell :  the  dark  valley  of  Hinnom,  warm  and  stifling, 
could  scarcely  be  the  Park  of  Jerusalem.  I  would  place 
it  at  the  amphitheatre  of  Jafa  Gate,  where  thousands  could 
assemble,  and  this  place  is  now  the  recreation-ground  of 
Jerusalem,  though  a  vast  cemetery.  The  King's  Gardens 
near  Siloam  are  much  too  confined  for  any  large  assemblage 
of  people.  Tophet  also  is  circular  in  form  like  a  timbrel. 
Isaiah  finds  the  king  there  (Ahaz).  Jeremiah  goes  out  of 
the  Potter's  Gate  to  break  the  earthen  bottle  there. 

As  for  the  sites  of  resting-place  of  Ark  of  our  [the]  Lord, 
Samuel's  birth  and  burial  place,  &c ,  &c.,  at  Kinyet  el  [?] 
I  have  sent  Rev.  R.  Barnes  of  Heavitree  all  the  details  of 
the  arguments,  in  case  your  lordship  would  care  to  see  them, 
but  I  expect  you  will  at  once  see  that  Ramathaim,  Arima- 
thaim  Ramah,  Arimathea,  are  identical  (also  Naioth^  being 
college),  for  I  took  my  knowledge  from  your  well.  The 
West  Hill  is  full  of  business  ;  the  Zion  Hill  is  taken  up 
with  the  Haram  enclosure  and  little  else  besides.  Wheat 
growls  in  the  northern  part  ;  no  one  ever  visits  it. 

Samuel  was  sacrificing  before  Ark  of  Covenant  when 
Saul  came  to  him. 

I  will  not  say  more  now  beyond  expressing  my  convic- 
tion that  by  your  Scripture  knowledge  and  the  light  given 
you,  you  would  fix  the  generality  of  Scripture  sites  without 
asking  any  of  the  residents'  opinions.  It  is  too  often  the 
case  that  we  follow  in  the  wake  of  one  another  in  these 
matters,  whereas  the  Bible  is  the  safe  guide,  and  also  con- 
tains all  the  necessary  knowledge  for  identification.  Mr. 
Barnes  has  a  sketch  of  Jerusalem  with  debris  removed,  and 
it  is  not  astonishing  when  one  thinks  that  this  Hill  of  Zion 
should  represent  the  human  form  ;  the  skull   is  mentioned 

'  From  the  verb  "  navah,"  to  rest,  abide  ;  "  x\bide  with  me, 
fast  falls  the  eventide."     (Gordon's  note  ) 


336  EPISCOPA  TE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.  [1869. 

four  times.  Zion  is  the  Church,  the  Body,  of  which 
Christ  is  the  Head,  we  are  the  members.  As  the  resurrec- 
tion body  resembles  the  earthly  body,  so  the  heavenly 
Jerusalem  should  represent  the  earthly.  Both  are  made  up 
of  stones,  the  one  living  stones,  the  other  dead  stones ;  the 
living  stones  are  men,  they  make  up  the  one  body  of  Christ. 
We  could  not  sit  on  His  Throne  if  we  were  not  members  of 
His  Body  ;  however,  I  will  not  pursue  this,  for  I  feel  I  am 
in  the  presence  of  a  master  in  these  matters.  We  have  each 
our  Jerusalem  in  us,  and  it  is  in  our  Jerusalem  the  contest 
goes  on,  of  good  and  evil. 

To  the  left  hand,  goats  ;  on  the  right,  sheep.  If  the  cross 
were  placed  as  I  have  shown  it,  which  is  the  point  one 
actually  stands  on,  on  the  Skull  Hill,  to  the  left  would  be 
towards  the  abyss,  the  Dead  Sea. 

There  is  a  general  tradition  that  waters  flow  under  the 
Damascus  Gate. 

Believe  me,  your  lordship's  most  sincerely, 

C.  E.  Gordon. 

Another  letter,  dated  Jaffa,  July  17,  1883,  is  also 
on  the  sites  of  the  Holy  Land.     It  concludes: — 

I  .shall  probably  never  see  your  lordship,  so  I  may  say 
how  blessed  you  have  been  in  your  Commentary.  You 
had  the  key,  Christ  and  His  members,  One  and  Indivisible. 
If  ever  spiritual  men  arise  who  will  look  on  our  redemption 
like  this,  what  treasures  v/c  will  have  in  the  Scriptures  ! 
Believe  me,  my  dear  Lord  Bishop, 

Yours  sincerely, 

C.  E.  Gordon. 

No  copy  has  unfortunately  come  to  light  of  the 
bishop's  reply,  though  from  Mr.  Barnes'  letters  it  is 
evident  that  some  reply  was  made.  The  following, 
addressed  to  General  Gordon  at   Khartoum,  has  a 


—1885.]  LETTER  TO  GENERAL  GORDON.  ZZI 

pathetic  interest  as  belonging  to  the  last  year  (1884) 
of  which  was  either  of  them  destined  to  see  the 
close,  and  as  having  been  written  on  the  eve  of  the 
anniversary  of  the  bishop's  consecration,  the  last 
before  he  resigned  his  see : — 

Riseholme,  Lincoln,  Feb.  23,  1884. 

My  dear  General  Gordon, — I  have  to  thank  you 
for  two  letters — one  from  Jerusalem,  dated  June  6th,  1883, 
the  other  from  Jaffa,  of  July  17th  last,  concerning  the 
"  holy  places,"  and  for  the  kind  words  in  them,  which  I 
greatly  value. 

Of  that  subject  I  will  not  now  speak  ;  you  are  very  busy 
with  other  things,  and  on  them  I  venture  to  say  a  few  words. 

I  have  read  your  proclamation  from  Khartoum  with 
deep  interest ;  especially  that  part  which  concerns  slavery. 
I  have  no  doubt  that  you  have  expected  to  be  blamed  by 
many  persons  in  England  for  it  :  and  so  it  is.  You  are 
condemned  for  it  in  many  quarters. 

But  amid  this  storm  of  censure,  many,  I  am  sure,  have 
asked  themselves  quietly  this  question,  "  What  would  a 
Christian  Apostle  have  done  in  your  place  .'' "  Happily  we 
have  an  answer  to  this  inquiry  in  the  Epistles  of  S.  Paul. 
He  denounces  men-stealers  (i  Tim.  i.  10),  avSpaTroScara^, 
by  which  word  he  meant  not  only  the  kidnappers  who 
stole  freemen  from  their  own  homes  ;  but  also  those  who 
violently  took  away  slaves  from  their  own  masters. 

I  infer  from  your  proclamation  that  you  would  prevent 
and  suppress  the  raids  of  slave-hunters  and  slave-traders  : 
and  that  you  would  protect  slaves  in  their  legal  rights  and 
relations  with  respect  to  their  masters ;  and  you  would 
also  protect  masters  with  respect  to  their  slaves. 

S.  Paul's  Epistle  to  Philemon  seems  to  supply  the 
solution  of  the  question  with  which  you  have  to  deal. 

S.  Paul  did  not  constrain  the  master  Philemon  to 
emancipate  his  slave  Onesimus,  whom  the  Apostle  had 

z 


2,l^EPISC0PA  TE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.  [1869— 

converted  to  Christianity.  On  the  contrary,  S.  Paul 
respected  Philemon's  rights,  and  sent  back  the  runaway 
slave,  Onesimus,  from  Rome  to  his  master  Philemon,  at 
Colossae,  and  he  promised  to  repay  the  money  that  One- 
simus had  taken  from  Philemon.  But  S.  Paul,  having 
Christianized  Philemon,  exhorted  him  to  receive  Onesimus 
"  no  longer  as  a  slave,  but  above  a  slave,  a  beloved  brother 
in  Christ^'  [v.   16).     You,  I  am  sure,  will  imitate  S.  Paul. 

S.  Paul  did  not  bribe  the  vast  multitude  of  slaves  with 
which  the  Roman  Empire  then  swarmed,  to  embrace 
Christianity  by  promising  them  freedom.  He  cancelled 
no  existing  rights  and  obligations,  but  he  Christianized 
them.  He  said  to  the  slave,  "  Art  thou  called  }  "  i.  e.  art 
thou  baptized  ;  "being  a  slave  (i  Cor.  vii.  20)  care  not  for 
it,"  let  not  thy  slavery  distress  thee  ;  "  but  if  thou  mayest 
be  made  free,  use  it  rather."  *'  Let  every  man  abide  in 
the  same  calling,  wherein  he  was  called."  And  again  he 
says,  "  Let  slaves  count  their  own  masters  worthy  of  all 
honour,  that  the  name  of  God  and  His  doctrine  be  not 
blasphemed"  (i  Tim.  vi.  i)  ;  and  again  he  thus  speaks  to 
slaves  :  "  Slaves,  be  obedient  to  your  masters  according  to 
the  flesh,  with  fear  and  trembling,  in  singleness  of  heart  as 
unto  Christ ;  not  with  eyeservice,  as  menpleasers  ;  but  as 
slaves  of  Christ,  doing  the  will  of  God  from  the  heart  ; 
with  good  will  doing  service,  as  to  the  Lord,  and  not  to 
men  :  knowing  that  whatever  good  thing  any  man  doeth, 
the  same  shall  he  receive  of  the  Lord,  whether  he  be  bond 
or  free.  Eph.  vi.  6  ;  cp.  Col.  iii.  22  ;  Tit.  ii.  9,  10 ;  i  Pet.  ii. 
10.  Thus  S.  Paul  dignified  slavery:  it  was  service  done 
to  the  King  of  Kings.  The  Christian  slave  was  the  Lord's 
freeman  (i  Cor.  vii.  22).  The  slave  here  on  earth  would  be 
a  saint  for  ever  hereafter. 

But  S.  Paul  had  a  good  deal  to  say  to  masters  as  well 
as  to  slaves  :  *'  Masters,  give  unto  your  slaves  that  which 
is  just  and  equal  ;  knowing  that  ye  also  have  a  Master  in 
heaven,  and  there  is  no  respect  of  persons  with   Him  " 


—1885.]  LETTER  TO  GENERAL  GORDON.  339 

(Col.  iv.  I  ;  Eph.  vi.  9)  ;  and  "  Paul  the  aged,  the  prisoner 
of  Christ"  (Philemon  9),  affectionately  entreated  his  friend 
Philemon  to  receive  back  his  runaway  slave  Onesimus 
as  "a  brother  in  Christ/'  The  silent  influence  of  this 
Apostolic  teaching  concerning  Christ's  Incarnation  and 
men^s  universal  brotherhood  in  Him  quietly  melted  away 
the  icy  frosts  of  slavery.  The  Primitive  Church  en- 
couraged the  ransoming  of  slaves  as  a  work  of  mercy,  but 
did  not  forcibly  take  their  power  'from  the  masters.  The 
Gospel  did  not  exasperate  the  slaveowner  against  itself 
and  against  the  slave  by  angry  invectives  and  contemp- 
tuous sarcasms,  and  violent  coercion,  but  by  Christian- 
izing the  master  it  enfranchised  the  slave.  It  endeared 
every  Onesimus  to  every  Philemon.  This,  indeed,  was  a 
work  of  time;  but  at  length,  especially  after  the  Empire 
had  become  Christian,  slavery  disappeared  from  Europe. 

The  same  may  be  done  in  the  same  way,  by  God's  help, 
in  Africa.  England  has  enacted  laws,  and  sent  her  ships, 
and  dictated  treaties  for  the  suppression  of  slavery  there. 
But  these  will  be  inoperative  unless  she  invokes  the  aid 
of  Christianity.  You  will  be  the  first  to  acknowledge  that 
your  proclamations  will  be  unavailing,  unless  they  are 
blessed  by  God,  and  aided  by  the  Gospel  of  Christ.  You 
appear  to  have  been  raised  up  by  Him  to  do  a  great  work 
there  ;  to  do  the  double  work  of  a  civil  and  military  ruler, 
and  of  a  Christian  apostle.  In  order  that  the  African 
slave-trade  may  be  suppressed,  Africa  must  be  Christianized. 
You  have  been  called  to  do  the  work  of  a  Constantine 
and  a  Theodosius,  and  you  will  be  conscious  that  you 
cannot  abolish  slavery  by  civil  enactments  and  military 
force  alone,  and  that  you  need  the  help  of  Christ  and  His 
Church.  I  therefore  implore  you,  my  dear  General  Gordon, 
to  encourage  Christian  missions,  and  to  welcome  Christian 
missionaries,  and  especially  those  who  endeavour  to  raise 
up  a  race  of  native  missionary  clergy  in  Africa,  wnich  may 
be  produced  from   ransomed  slaves,  particularly  by  the 

z   2 


340  EP I  SCOP  A  TE—PRA  CTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.\\Ze^— 

help  of  the  "  Universities'  Mission  to  Central  Africa."  I 
long  to  see  Bishop  Smythies  coming  from  Zanzibar  to 
your  side,  and  working  with  you  in  the  Soudan.  It  is  a 
blessed  thought  that  one  of  the  oldest  Churches  in  Africa 
and  the  world,  the  Church  of  Abyssinia,  owes  its  existence, 
under  God,  to  a  Christian  slave,  Frumentius,  encouraged 
by  the  king  of  that  country,  and  consecrated  to  be  the 
bishop  of  it  by  Athanasius  at  Alexandria. 

May  not  a  similar  work  be  done,  under  your  govern- 
ment, in  the  Soudan  } 

May  God  bless  you,  and  keep  you,  my  dear  General 
Gordon,  to  see  the  fruit  of  your  labours  in  the  suppression 
of  the  slave-trade,  and  in  the  spread  of  the  Gospel  in 
Africa  ;  and  may  He  crown  you  hereafter  with  everlasting 
glory,  for  His  dear  Son's  sake. 

I  am,  my  dear  General, 
Yours  faithfully  and  affectionately  in  the  Lord, 

General  Gordon,  Khartoum.  C.  Lincoln. 

One  more  point  remains  to  be  noticed,  viz.,  the 
deep  interest  which  the  Bishop  always  took  in  the 
welfare  of  the  City  of  Lincoln — ^.in  its  spiritual  welfare, 
of  course,  first  and  foremost,  but  also  in  its  welfare  in 
other  respects.  Deeply  as  his  loss  was  regretted 
throughout  the  diocese,  there  was  no  place  where  it 
was  more  nearly  felt  than  in  the  City  of  Lincoln  itself. 
He  loved  to  dwell  on  the  fact  that  that  city,  "  even 
before  the  time  of  Bishop  Grosseteste,  formed  the 
rural  deanery  of  Christianity — a  remarkable  word 
as  showing  that  the  neighbourhood  of  the  cathedral 
was  regarded  as  a  luminous  spiritual  Goshen,  con- 
trasted with  the  Egypt  of  paganism,  properly  so 
called,  around  it."     He  felt  that  he  had  a  special 


— i88s.]  CITY  OF  LINCOLN.  341 

obligation  in  regard  to  the  ancient  city  of  Lincoln, 
and  nobly  did  he  endeavour  to  fulfil  that  obligation. 
It  will  be  impossible  to  describe  all  his  good  deeds  in 
connection  with  the  cathedral  city.  But  perhaps  it  may 
be  permitted,  without  invidiousness,  to  select  two. 

S.  Paul's  was  a  new  building  which  had  taken 
the  place  of  what  was  believed  to  be  the  oldest 
church  in 'Lincoln  ;  and  the  Bishop  had  started  the 
scheme  for  rebuilding  it  with  a  munificent  donation, 
as  usual.  At  the  laying  of  the  foundation-stone  on 
S.  Paul's  Day,  1877,  he  said, — 

In  the  eight  years  of  my  episcopate  it  has  been  my 
happiness  to  see  no  less  than  seven  new  churches  either 
entirely  built,  or  begun  to  be  built,  in  this  city  of  Lincoln. 
At  the  north,  on  the  side  of  this  old  Roman  road  is  the 
Training  School  new  chapel ;  here  is  S.  Paul's  ;  a  little  to 
the  east  is  S.  Peter's  in  Eastgate,  which,  I  am  glad  to  find 
has  an  overflowing  congregation,  fruitful  in  good  works ; 
to  the  south  are  the  two  spacious  new  churches  of  S.  Martin 
and  S.  Swithin  ;  further  to  the  south  is  the  new  church  of 
S.  Mark,  the  spire  of  which  has  just  been  erected  by  the 
munificence  of  one  lady  ;  and  further  is  the  church  of  S. 
Andrew,  now  still  rising  from  its  foundations.  There  is 
also  the  restored  church  of  S.  Mary-le-Wigford  with  its 
new  aisle.  And  to  return  to  this  neighbourhood  where  we 
are,  we  have  also  the  prospect  of  a  chapel-of-ease  in  the 
parish  of  S.  Nicholas  and  S.  John. 

The  next  shows  that,  though  the  cathedral  was 
the  centre  of  attraction  to  him,  with  all  its  ancient 
associations  "above  hill,"  the  spiritual  welfare  of  the 
busy  city  "below  hill  "had  its  fullest  share  in  his 
paternal    care.     Let    us    take    the    building    of    S 


2,xz  EPISCOPATE— PRACTICAL  WORK  IN  DIOCESE.  [1869— 

Andrew's  Church,  erected  especially  for  the  foundry- 
men  in  the  extensive  works  of  Messrs.  Robey  and  Co. 
The  part  which  the  bishop  took  cannot  be  better 
expressed  than  in  the  words  of  the  address  pre- 
sented to  him  at  the  consecration  in  May,  1878,  by 
Mr.  C.  S.  Dickinson,  one  of  the  churchwardens : — 

We,  the  churchwardens  and  other  parishioners  of  S. 
Peter-at-Gowts  [the  mother  church  of  the  parish  in  which 
S.  Andrew's  was  erected]  .  .  ,  cannot  forget  the  many  proofs 
you  have  given  us  of  your  great  regard  for  the  welfare  of 
the  Church  in  this  parish,  which  is  composed  so  largely  of 
artisans.  After  the  site  for  the  new  building  had  been  con- 
veyed to  the  Ecclesiastical  Commissioners,  it  was  you  who 
took  the  first  step  towards  carrying  out  the  design.  You 
formed  a  committee;  you  gave  the  first  munificent  donation 
of  1200/.;  you  induced  the  late  Prebendary  Swan — to  whom 
and  to  whose  son  this  parish  will  always  be  so  deeply  in- 
debted for  their  great  liberality — to  give  the  large  sums  of 
money  which  he  contributed ;  you  obtained  almost  the  whole 
of  the  contributions,  and  you  have  never  ceased  to  take  the 
keenest  interest  in  every  stage  of  the  building. 

This  is  only  a  specimen  of  what  the  bishop  did 
elsewhere  both  "above  hill "  and  "below  hill"  in 
Lincoln. 

This    imperfect  sketch  of  Bishop  Wordsworth's 

episcopate  cannot  be  more  fitly  closed  than  in  his 

own  most  touching  words  at  the  conclusion  of  his 

last  pastoral  address  : — 

Bear  with  me,  brethren,  for  adding  that  one  who  is  soon 
about  to  enter  his  seventy-sixth  year,  and  who — even  with 
the  cordial  sympathy  and  loving  help  of  his  dear  brother 
the  Bishop  Suffragan  of  Nottingham — has  for  some  time 
felt  his  physical  powers  to  be  unequal  to  the  work  of  the 


CONCLUSION  OF  HIS  LAST  PASTORAL.         343 

large  diocese,  can  hardly  venture  to  look  forward  to  an 
event  so  distant  as  another  triennial  visitation.  Let  me 
therefore  thank  you — as  I  do  from  the  bottom  of  my  heart 
— for  your  great  goodness  to  me  during  my  continuance 
among  you  for  nearly  fourteen  years  ;  and  I  pray  God  to 
send  His  blessing  richly  upon  you,  upon  your  families, 
upon  your  parishes,  and  upon  this  diocese ;  upon  the 
Church  and  Realm  of  England,  and  on  the  Church  of 
Christ  Universal." 

The  anticipation  v^as  realized  ;  when  the  time  for 
the  next  visitation  came  round,  the  aged  prelate 
had  entered  into  his  rest ;  and  surely  it  may  be 
said  that,  q2m  bishop,  he  was  "  felix  opportunitate 
mortis."  He  just  lived  long  enough  to  see  his  most 
cherished  scheme,  the  subdivision  of  the  diocese, 
satisfactorily  carried  out,  and  one  appointed  to  his 
own  see  whom  of  all  men  he  most  desired.  On 
hearing  of  Dr.  King's  nomination,  he  exclaimed, 
'•  Nunc  dimittis,"  &c.,  and  within  a  very  short  time 
he  "  departed  in  peace.''  ' 

1  Since  the  above  was  in  print  we  have  received  from  the 
Bishop  of  Nottingham  a  letter  addressed  to  him  (9  Oct.  1884) 
containing  Bishop  Wordsworth's  "Farewell  to  the  Diocesan  Con- 
ference."    The  following  is  an  extract : — 

"  Contemplating  the  probability  that  it  may  not  please  God  to 
restore  my  powers  of  active  work,  after  two  severe  illnesses,  and 
at  my  advanced  age — just  approaching  my  seventy-eighth  year — 
I  desire  to  avail  myself  of  this  opportunity  of  expressing  through 
you  at  the  Conference  my  heartfelt  gratitude  to  the  Clergy  and 
Laity  of  the  Diocese  for  their  great  kindness  to  me  during  my 
Episcopate ;  and  I  wish  also  to  record  my  thankfulness  to  you  for 
your  loving  sympathy  and  help  in  the  discharge  of  my  Episcopal 
duties." 


CHAPTER  XL 

INTERCOURSE  WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES. 

§  I.  France.     1830 — 1885. 

As  has  been  already  shown,  Bishop  Wordsworth's 
interest  in  the  Churches  of  Continental  Christendom 
began  as  early  as  the  year  1828,  when  he  first  visited 
Paris.  It  was  hardly  possible  that  with  a  mind  con- 
stituted as  his  the  case  should  have  been  otherwise. 
He  had  always  a  great  love  for  foreign  travel. 
"Books,"  said  William  Wordsworth  (speaking  of 
Southey),  "  were  his  ruling  passion,  as  wandering  was 
miner  The  love  of  "  books  "  and  of  "  wandering  " 
may  be  said  to  have  been  combined  in  his  nephew ; 
but  it  was  not  so  much  the  study  of  nature  as  of 
humanity,  whether  in  its  historical  or  contemporary 
aspects,  that  attracted  him.  And  especially  was  this 
the  case  with  humanity  looked  at  from  the  point  of 
view  of  religion.  Bishop  Christopher  Wordsworth 
had  the  great  advantage  of  being  one  of  the  best 
modern  Greek  scholars  of  his  day,  and  hence  he  was 
able  to  take  an  intelligent  interest  not  only  in  the 
Latin  but  in  the  Greek  branch  of  the  Catholic 
Church,  and  to  realize  the  relations  of  the  Church  of 
England  to  the  Oriental  Church  in  a  way  that  is  too 
rare  among  Englishmen. 


1830.1  FRANCE.  345 

The   first  outward   manifestation  of  his  interest  in 
foreign   Church  matters  was  the  pubhcation  of  his 
"Diary  in  France,"  written  in  the  summer  of  1844, 
when  he   paid   a  month's  visit   to   Paris,  during  his 
Harrow  vacation,  with  the  primary  purpose  of  col- 
lating some  manuscripts  of  Theocritus,  preserved  in 
the  Bibliotheque  du  Roi,  as  it  was  then  called.     The 
moment  was  full  of  interest  to  a  Churchman.     In 
England  the  Tractarian  wave  which  had  been  rushing 
forward  and  carrying  all   before   it   for  the  last   ten 
years  was  curling  over  for  a  fall.     Already  some  of 
those  who  had  been  affected  by  it  had  thrown  down 
their  arms  and  submitted  to  Rome.     Mr.  Newman 
had  withdrawn  from  Oxford  to  Littlemore.     There 
was   triumph  throughout  the    Papal    camp,   and   at 
home  distress  with  perplexity,  men's  hearts  failing 
them  for  fear.     In  France  the  new  Church  erected 
by  Napoleon  on  the  ruins  of  Gallicanism  was  gradu- 
ally   establishing    itself   in    the    midst    of   a   hostile 
population,  in  the  presence  of  an  unfriendly  Govern- 
ment.     Dr.  Wordsworth,    whose    reputation    as    a 
scholar  and  a  theologian  had  preceded  him,  naturally 
came  into  contact  with  some  of  the  leading  French, 
ecclesiastics  of  the  day,  as  Dom  Gueranger,  Abbe 
de  Solesmes,  and  head  of  the  French  Benedictines, 
the  learned  Pere,  afterwards  Cardinal  Pitra,  Mon- 
sieur   Gondon,    of  whom  more  will  be   said  here- 
after, and   De    la   Mennais,   who    had  by    this  time 
renounced    Christianity.      One    month's   visit    to    a 
foreign  capital  does  not  give  much  opportunity   for 


346   INTERCOURSE  WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.  [1830— 

controversy,  but  intercourse  with  these  men  caused 
Dr.  Wordsworth  to  express  his  sentiments  on  Church 
affairs  in  his  "  Diary  "  with  some  fulness,  and  led  on 
afterwards  to  the  publication  of  the  two  volumes  of 
the  "  Letters  to  M.  Gondon,"  which  are  unsurpassed 
in  their  effectiveness  as  a  brilliant  polemic  against 
Rome. 

The  point  which  seems  to  have  impressed  itself 
most  at  this  time  on  Dr.  Wordsworth's  mind  with 
respect  to  the  French  Church  was  the  loss  of  its 
distinctive  national  and  Galilean  character,  which 
resulted  in  its  absorption  into  the  Ultramontane 
Church  centralized  at  Rome.  A  further  conse- 
quence of  this  was  its  growing  alienation  from  the 
State  and  from  the  affections  of  the  people.^ 

He  writes : — 

The  bishops,  as  is  well  known,  are  all  nominated  by  the 
king,  but  the  Pope  has  the  power  of  refusing  his  sanction 
to  the  nomination,  a  power  which  he  has  sometimes  been 
known  to  exercise.  But  what  is  very  remarkable  is,  that 
notwithstanding  this  royal  prerogative  there  are  not  two 
bishops  in  France  who  are  not  Ultramontanes,  that  is, 
entirely  devoted  to  the  interests  of  the  Holy  See.  This 
has  arisen  from  the  almost  entire  demolition  of  the  French 
Church  as  a  national  establishment ;  and  the  real  gainer  by 
this  extinction  of  the  Galilean  Church,  as  such,  is  Rome  ; 
although  that  destruction  was  brought  about  by  principles 
hostile  to  Rome,  and  to  Christianity  in  general. 

In  France,  at  present,  we  see  on  one  side  the  French 
clergy  and  the  Pope,  and  on  the  other  the  majority  in  the 
Chambers,  and  the  throne— the  latter,  unfortunately,  driven 

'  T/'^^  "  Diary,"  pp.  14—16,  193— 195»  244. 


—1885.]  FRANCE.  347 

by  suspicion  of,  and  antipathy  to  the  clergy,  into  a  state  of 
practical  opposition  to  Christianity,  and  resting  for  its 
support  on  principles  not  of  sound  reason  and  religion,  but 
of  a  vain  and  arrogant  philosophy,  which  tends  to  the  de- 
struction of  monarchy,  and  to  the  dissolution  of  social 
order.  It  is  said  to  be  the  opinion  of  the  higher  powers  in 
France  that  religion  was  of  great  service  as  a  political  and 
moral  engine,  as  long  as  the  people  were  ill-instructed,  and 
while  the  science  of  legislation  was  little  understood  ;  but 
now  that  constitutions  and  codes  have  been  perfectionncs 
by  human  exertion  and  skill,  Christianity  has  become 
obsolete  as  a  safeguard  of  political  institutions,  and  a 
religious  foundation  is  no  longer  necessary  to  the  fabric  of 
government.  Certain  it  is  that  the  throne  of  France  has  at 
present  no  religious  basis,  and  that  the  Church  has  not  only 
been  almost  wholly  severed  from  the  State,  but  after  a  very 
few  years  from  that  severance,  which  took  place  in  1830, 
finds  itself  placed  in  a  condition  of  direct  and  active  opposi- 
tion to  it.     ("Diary,"  pp.  14 — 16.) 

He  goes  on  to  point  out  in  forcible  language, 
quoting  the  authority  of  De  Maistre,  the  mischief 
which  the  Charte  of  1830  was  doing  in  destroying 
the  national  and  patriotic  sentiment  among  the 
clergy,  in  reducing  them,  in  common  with  other  re- 
ligious denominations,  Jewish  Rabbis  included,  to 
mere  stipendiaries  of  the  State,  and  in  thus  throwing 
them  into  the  arms  of  the  Papacy.  He  compares 
the  French  Church  of  earlier  years  to  a  "  sacred 
Delos  bound  by  chains  between  the  Myconos  of  the 
Monarchy  on  the  one  side,  and  the  Gyaros  of  the 
Papacy  on  the  other.  But  the  Charte  came  in  in 
1830,  and,  in  an  evil  hour,  it  cut  the  monarchical 
cable,  and  the  Delos  of  the  Church  was  seen  imme- 


348   INTERCOURSE  WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.  [1830— 

diately  looming  off  to  the  Romish  Gyaros ;  and  the 
Pontifical  fisherman  of  that  island  lost  no  time  in 
seizing  hold  of  dolk  the  cables,  and  has  now  tied  the 
Galilean  Delos  to  himself, 

"  Immotamque  coli  dedit,  et  contemnere  ventos. 

"  The  Crown  has  suffered  irreparable  injury  from 
this  annihilation  of  the  Church  as  an  Establishment. 
The  Church  being  left  to  itself  has  become  extra- 
national, and,  indeed,  anti-national ;  it  declares  in  a 
bold  and  somewhat  menacing  tone,  that  the  Crown 
having  now  become  tmchristia7i,  has  no  pretence 
whatever  to  meddle  in  the  affairs  of  the  Church, 
The  King  of  France,  it  says,  was  formerly  Rex 
Christianissimus  ;  as  such  he  had  ecclesiastical  juris- 
diction ;  but  now  he  has  renounced  that  title,  and 
his  Regale,  therefore,  is  at  an  end." 

He  then  goes  on  to  show  how  the  religious  orders, 
especially  the  Jesuits,  are  operating  a  silent  and  gra- 
dual change,  of  the  influence  of  the  works  of  Ravigna, 
and  Cahour,  and  their  effect  on  the  women  and  young 
men  of  France,  of  the  "  miracles,  visions,  cures,  and 
conversions"  which  "have  come  in  to  fan  the  fire 
into  a  fanatical  flame  of  religious  frenzy  ;  and  the 
character  of  the  secular  clergy,  the  priesthood,  and 
even  the  episcopate,  finds  itself  influenced  by  a 
secret  and  mysterious  power  which  has  beguiled  it 
of  its  religious  sobriety,  almost  without  its  knowledge, 
and  perhaps  against  its  will." 

Another  subject  which  attracted  Dr.  Words- 
worth's  deepest  interest  in   France  was   education. 


—1885.]  FRANCE.  349 

We  wish  we  had  space  to  quote  his  weighty  words 
on  that  subject,  especially  on  the  constitution  of  the 
University. 

The  "  Diary  in  France  "  was  written  in  the  reign 
of  Louis  Philippe,  and  the  catastrophe  of  his  fall 
was  anticipated  by  its  author,  as  may  be  seen  from 
one  of  the  passages  referred  to  above. 

Another  work  already  mentioned,  "  Letters  to  M. 
Gondon,"  who  was  one  of  the  editors  of  the  Univers, 
and  the  author  of  "  Mouvement  religieux  en  Angle- 
terre,"  &c.,  and  the  translator  of  Dr.  Newman's 
"  Essay  on  Development,"  appeared  shortly  after- 
wards. In  it  the  author  set  himself  to  prove  the 
destructive  character  of  the  Church  of  Rome,  both 
as  regards  human  reason,  the  authority  of  Holy 
Scripture,  that  of  the  Primitive  Church,  and  of  civil 
government.  The  whole  work,  and  its  sequel,  pub- 
lished a  little  later,  is  an  armoury  of  offensive  as 
well  as  defensive  weapons,  and  well  deserves  the 
perusal  of  all  who  are  concerned  in  the  Roman 
controversy. 

In  1853  Dr.  Wordsworth  paid  a  third  visit  to 
Paris  (when  engaged  in  his  work  on  S.  Hippolytus), 
Napoleon  III.  being  now  in  power.  The  circum- 
stances of  the  case  were  at  this  time  altogether 
changed.  Formerly  Louis  Philippe  had  called  in 
the  aid  of  sceptics  to  restrain  the  power  of  a  Ro- 
manized priesthood,  thereby  making  enemies  of  one 
set  of  men,  and  not  gaining  the  support  of  another. 


350  INTERCOURSE  WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.  [1830— 

Now  Napoleon  III.  had  made  an  alliance  with  that 
priesthood,  failing,  however,  to  gain  thereby  its 
cordial  support,  while  he  alienated  the  majority  of 
his  subjects.  In  consequence  of  the  visit  there  was 
published  (1854)  a  sort  of  second  part  of  the  "  Diary 
in  France,"  called  "  Notes  at  Paris,"  and  in  this 
brochure  Dr.  Wordsworth  animadverted  on  the 
change  which  had  taken  place  in  the  relations 
between  Church  and  State.  The  support  accorded 
to  religion  by  Napoleon  III.  appeared  to  him  to  be 
regarded  by  the  French  nation  not  as  springing  from 
genuine  faith  and  conviction,  but  "as  an  ingenious 
and  effective  machine  of  Macchiavellian  policy," 
and  to  be  accordingly  distrusted  by  the  bulk  of  the 
people. 

"  Is  it  not,"  he  says,  "  to  be  apprehended  that  the  same 
Papal  element  which  made  Louis  Philippe  jealous  of  the 
Church,  will  now,  being  cherished  by  the  State,  render 
the  government  of  Napoleon  III.  obnoxious  to  the  nation, 
and  by  its  extravagances  and  impostures,  provoke  and 
strengthen  the  cause  of  Infidelity  and  Revolution,  and 
prepare  the  way  for  the  downfall  of  his  dynasty  ?  Until 
the  Papal  element  is  eliminated  from  the  Church  of  France, 
the  Church  can  never  be  a  source  of  strength  to  the  Throne ; 
it  will  rather  be  a  cause  of  peril  to  it.  But  if  that  were 
done,  then  the  Church  and  Throne  might  aid  each  other, 
and  flourish  together."     ("  Notes  at  Paris,"  pp.  11 — 17.) 

On  the  occasion  of  his  visit  to  France  in  1854, 
Dr.  Wordsworth  paid  special  attention  to  the  state 
of  Protestantism  in  that  country  as  well  as  of  Roman 
Catholicism.     Feeling  a  warm  interest  in  the  pro- 


—1885.]  FRANCE.  351 

gress  and  welfare  of  the  former  he  nevertheless 
came  to  the  conclusion  that  in  its  present  condition 
of  colourless  dreariness  and  sectarian  division  it 
could  make  no  head  against  either  Rome  or  in- 
fidelity. 

An  interesting  conversation  which  he  had  with  a 
Protestant  pastor  may  be  found  in  his  "  Notes  at 
Paris,"  pp.  36—38. 

Eight  years  later,  in  1862,  Dr.  Wordsworth  was 
again  in  Paris.  The  power  of  Napoleon  III.  was 
now  at  its  zenith,  and  the  alliance  entered  into 
between  him  and  the  Church  of  Rome  for  their 
mutual  support  spread  over  the  surface  of  French 
society  an  appearance  of  peace  and  stability  which 
had,  however,  no  real  existence.  Dr.  Wordsworth 
commented  as  follows  : — 

Gallicanism  is  almost  extinct  in  France,  Ultramon- 
tanism  reigns  supreme  in  her  ecclesiastical  seminaries,  in 
the  pulpits  of  her  churches,  in  her  ritual,  in  the  pastorals  of 
her  hierarchy.  It  has  achieved  this  triumph  in  a  country 
which  was  once  proud  of  its  spiritual  independence.  It  has 
not  achieved  it  by  its  own  strength,  or  because  it  is  con- 
genial to  the  feelings  of  the  French  people,  or  even  of  the 
French  clergy  and  hierarchy.  No ;  Ultramontanism  has 
not  only  trampled  under  its  feet  the  Gallican  liberties,  but 
it  has  also  crushed  the  French  episcopate.  It  has  deprived 
the  French  metropolitans  of  their  ancient  privileges,  and 
has  despoiled  the  French  bishops  of  their  apostolic  dignity, 
and  has  reduced  them  to  mere  shadows  and  cyphers,  slaves 
and  bondsmen  of  the  Papacy.  Ultramontanism  has  grown 
by  the  errors  of  politicians.  It  has  been  strengthened  by 
the  encroachments  of  secular  powers  upon  the  spiritual 
liberties  of  the   French   Church.      These   encroachments 


352    INTERCOURSE  WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.  [1830— 

have  brought  the  secular  power  into  hatred  and  contempt, 
and  have  made  the  theory  of  a  National  Church  to  be 
odious  to  the  spirituality  in  France,  and  to  be  only  another 
name  for  arbitrary  tyranny  and  Erastianism.  The  French 
bishops  and  clergy  cling  to  Ultramontanism,  not  so  much 
because  they  love  it  for  its  own  sake,  but  because  they 
have  bitter  experience  of  excessive  secular  domination  in 
ecclesiastical  matters,  and  because  they  regard  the  Papacy 
as  a  powerful  bulwark  against  the  further  encroachments  of 
the  Crown.  It  is  earnestly  to  be  desired  for  the  sake  of 
France,  England,  Europe,  and  the  world,  that  the  French 
nation,  and  especially  the  French  hierarchy  and  clergy, 
may  be  induced  to  modify  their  sentiments  with  regard  to 
National  Churches  ;  and  that  the  Church  of  England  may 
be  enabled  to  present  to  their  eyes  a  realization  of  the  idea 
of  a  National  Church,  loyal,  but  not  servile  ;  patriotic  in 
its  principles  of  civil  polity,  and  scriptural,  primitive,  and 
catholic  in  doctrine  and  discipline.  The  peace  of  Europe 
and  the  world  depends,  in  no  small  degree,  on  the  realiza- 
tion of  this  theory. 

Dr.  Wordsworth's  interest  in  the  French  Church 
and  in  French  education  never  slackened.  He 
watched  their  course  with  anxiety  under  the  Re- 
public as  he  had  watched  it  under  Louis  Philippe 
and  under  Napoleon  III.  When  M.  Loyson  made 
an  effort,  single-handed,  to  restore  the  Galilean 
Church  in  1872,  his  sympathies  went  with  him.  He 
encouraged  M.  Guettee,  author  of  "  L'Observateur 
Catholique,"  "  L'Union  Chrctienne,"  "  L'Histoirede 
ri^glise  de  France,"  and  other  works,  until  the 
latter,  despairing  of  Gallicanism,  precipitated  himself 
into  the  Russo-Greek  Church.  He  kept  up  a  corre- 
spondence   with    M.    Garcin    de    Tassy,  the    great 


iS85.]  ITALY.  353 

Orientalist,  and  the  most  genuine  representative  of 
traditional  Gallicanism,  until  his  death  in  1878.  M. 
Bougaud's  "  Grand  Peril  de  I'Eglise  de  France, 
au  19^  siecle,"  published  in  1878,  was  a  book  that 
he  studied  with  an  exceeding  interest,  and  the  last 
labours  of  the  Rev.  Lewis  M.  Hogg,  who  died  in 
1883,  were  to  gather  for  him  statistics  and  informa- 
tion as  to  the  effect  of  the  "  laicisation,"  an  inexact 
term  used  for  the  "secularization"  of  the  French 
schools.  M.  Bougaud's  work  is  scored  page  after 
page  by  the  pencil  with  which  the  bishop  was  wont 
to  mark  passages  to  be  remembered  or  afterwards 
quoted,  and  Mr.  Hogg's  letters  were  left  tied 
together,  and  docketed  in  the  bishop's  handwriting, 
ready  for  future  use. 

§  II.   Italy.     1862— 1885. 

In  the  year  1862  Dr.  Wordsworth  paid  a  visit  to 
Italy,  similar  in  character  to  the  two  visits  he  had 
paid  to  France  in  1844  and  1854.  The  French 
excursions  had  been  made  for  the  primary  purpose  of 
consulting  manuscripts  in  the  libraries  of  Paris.  The 
Italian  tour  was  undertaken  with  the  direct  object  of 
observing  the  state  of  religion  in  Italy  at  a  time 
which  he  thought  "  might  perhaps  prove  more  im- 
portant to  the  Church  in  Italy  than  any  crisis  in  her 
history  since  the  days  of  the  Council  of  Trent  in  the 
sixteenth  century."  It  was  a  moment  when  all  eyes 
were  fixed  on  that  country.  Pope  Pius's  attempt  to 
make  himself  the  head  of  a  federal  Italy  had  failed. 

A  a 


354    INTERCOURSE   WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.  [1862— 

In  spite  of  the  fatal  field  of  Novara,  and  the  abdi- 
cation of  Carlo  Alberto  in  1849,  the  house  of  Savoy- 
had  waxed  stronger  and  stronger,  while  the  Pope 
having  given  up  his  attempt  at  popularizing  the 
Papacy,  had  thrown  himself  into  the  arms  of  the 
Jesuits  and  Reactionaries,  ranging  himself  amongst 
the  foremost  and  bitterest  enemies  of  the  unity 
of  the  Italian  people,  if  that  unity  were  to  be 
realized  under  a  lay  sovereign  whom  he  regarded 
as  his  rival  and  supplanter.  The  battle  of  Magenta, 
which  gave  to  Victor  Emmanuel  the  kingdom  of 
Italy,  had  been  fought  three  years  previously  to  Dr. 
Wordsworth's  visit.  Cavour  had  died  only  a  year 
ago.  The  two  most  prominent  statesmen  were 
Ricasoli  and  Ratazzi,  while  Garibaldi's  was  the 
greatest  name  in  Italy,  perhaps  in  Europe.  The 
ecclesiastical  policy  of  the  rising  kingdom  of  Italy 
was  as  yet  unsettled,  and  the  welfare  of  Italy  and  of 
the  Church  Catholic  was  largely  dependent  upon 
it.  For  the  moment  there  was  direct  and  angry 
antagonism  between  the  Church  and  State.  No 
fewer  than  thirty-four  bishoprics  were  vacant  because 
the  Pope  refused  to  accept  the  royal  nominations  ; 
and  while  the  Italian  people  was  rejoicing  in  its 
newly-won  liberties,  and  celebrating  them  by  a 
national  festival,  the  Pope  gave  orders  to  his  bishops, 
and  the  bishops  to  their  clergy,  forbidding  them  to 
take  part  in  the  festival,  and  suspending  them  if  they 
ventured  to  do  so.  These  grave  circumstances  at 
once    attracted    Dr.  Wordsworth's    notice    and    in- 


-i885.]  ITALY.  355 

terest.      He  states  the  conditions  of  the  question  as 
follows  :  — 

Throughout  the  whole  of  the  Kingdom  of  Italy  no 
means  now  exist  for  filling  up  any  vacant  Episcopal  See. 
Precisely  the  same  difficulty  has  now  arisen  in  Italy  as 
occurred  in  France  under  Louis  XIV.  in  1683,  and  under 
Napoleon  I.  in  1809.  How  will  this  difficulty  be  solved? 
Will  Victor  Emmanuel  make  a  humble  submission  to  the 
Pope,  as  Louis  XIV.  did  ?  Or  will  he  obtain  from  the 
Pope  a  Concordat  like  that  which  Napoleon  extorted  from 
Pius  VII.  at  Fontainebleau  in  1813?  Neither  of  these 
results  seems  very  probable.  And  even  if  the  Crown 
should  resort  to  one  or  other  of  these  alternatives,  will  the 
metropolitan  clergy,  and  above  all  the  people  of  Italy, 
consent  to  an  accommodation  by  which  their  own  ancient 
rights  would  be  sacrificed?  Or  will  the  Crown,  the  clergy, 
and  the  people  unite  in  an  earnest  endeavour  to  ascertain 
their  own  relative  rights  and  duties  in  this  grave  matter, 
according  to  the  ancient  laws  and  practice  of  the  best  ages 
of  the  Church  1 

These  questions  call  for  a  speedy  solution.  According 
to  the  ancient  laws  of  the  Church,  as  well  as  the  principles 
of  common  equity  and  charity,  no  Episcopal  See  ought  to 
be  kept  vacant  above  two  or  three  months.  At  present 
there  is  a  violent  struggle  between  the  Papacy  and  the 
Crown,  and  it  is  daily  becoming  more  fierce.  On  one  side 
is  the  Papal  hierarchy,  and  on  the  other  the  Government 
and  the  people,  and  some  of  the  clergy.  Religion  suffers 
by  this  struggle  :  if  it  is  prolonged,  the  people  may  lapse  into 
irreligion,  and  if  irreligion  prevails.  Revolution  will  soon 
follow.     ("  Tour  in  Italy,"  i.  6'^:) 

The  author  then,  as  is  his  wont,  refers  to  the 
Primitive  Church,  and  commends  the  example  of 
S.  Ambrose  to  Milan,  the  city  of  S.  Ambrose 
(p.  127):— 

A  a  2 


336    INTERCOURSE   WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.  [1862- 

In  the  age  of  S.  Ambrose  the  bishops  of  these  sees  were 
elected  by  the  clergy  and  people,  and  were  confirmed  by  the 
metropolitan  of  the  province,  that  is,  by  the  Bishop  of 
Milan,  and  were  then  consecrated  by  him  and  two  or  three 
of  his  suffragan  bishops.  All  this  was  done  without  any 
reference  to  Rome.  Thus  S.  Ambrose  in  his  Epistles,  still 
extant,  mentions  that  he  himself  ordained  the  Bisliops  of 
Pavia,  Brescia,  Como,  Bergamo,  and  others. 

Dr.  Wordsworth  was  not  a  man  to  see  a  vast 
problem  proposed  for  solution  without  attempting 
to  solve  it.  During  his  visit  to  Italy  he  wrote  to 
Sir  James  Hudson,  then  the  English  Minister  at 
Turin,  "  Three  Letters  to  a  Statesman,"  in  which 
he  dwelt  upon  the  dangers  arising  both  to  Italy  and 
to  the  Church  from  the  conflict  between  the  Monarchy 
and  the  National  Church,  and  pointed  out  that  the 
path  of  safety  for  Italian  statesmen  was  that  of  vin- 
dicating the  primitive  rights  both  of  the  Church  and 
of  monarchs,  and  repudiating  the  usurpations  and 
encroachments  of  the  See  of  Rome.  These  letters 
were  translated  into  Italian  by  Signor  Pifferi,  an 
Italian  gentleman  living  at  Turin,  and  they  were 
widely  circulated  in  Italy  by  the  agency  of  the 
Anglo-Continental  Society,  under  the  title  of  "  Tre 
Lettere  ad  un  Uomo  di  Stato  sulla  Guerra  della  Corte 
di  Roma  contro  il  regno  d'  Italia."  The  Court  of 
Rome  recognized  the  hand  of  a  master  in  the  art  of 
controversial  assault,  and  felt  that  a  deadly  stroke 
was  aimed  at  her  encroachment  in  this  pamphlet. 
Discovering  that  it  had  emanated  from  the  house  of 
Signor  Pifferi  in  Turin,  Cardinal  de  Angelis,  Arch- 


-1885.]  ITALY.  357 

bishop  of  Fermo,  shortly  afterwards  appointed 
Chamberlain  to  the  Pope,  supposing  Signor  Pifferi 
to  be  its  author,  made  him  an  offer  of  a  provision  at 
the  Papal  expense,  if  he  would  undertake  to  write 
and  publish  no  more  such  letters.^  But  while  the 
Papacy  felt  its  danger,  knowing  where  it  was  most 
vulnerable,  statesmen  who  were  its  opponents  did 
not  know  where  to  plant  the  dreaded  blow.  The 
policy  of  washing  their  hands  of  all  religion  was 
more  in  accordance  with  their  temper,  and  if  not 
wiser  at  least  more  easy  of  adoption.  In  1866  the 
crisis  arrived  when  it  was  necessary  either  to  defy 
the  Pope  by  constituting  a  National  Church  freed 
from  his  control  and  governed  by  its  own  arch- 
bishops and  bishops,  or  to  seek  for  reconciliation 
with  the  Pope  by  sacrificing  to  the  Papacy  the  rights 
and  prerogatives  of  the  Church  and  of  the  State. 
Ricasoli,  then   Prime  Minister  of   Italy,   chose  the 

^  "  Vive  qui  in  un  convento  come  prigioniero  il  Card.  De 
Angelis,  uomo  vecchio  ed  in  predicamento  di  Papa.  Esso  ha 
letto  la  sua  lettera  che  gli^feci  presentare  per  terza  mano.  ...  Mi 
ha  fatto  di  poi  sapere  che  se  io  volessi  cessare  dello  scrivere,  mi 
farebbe  avere  una  pensione  del  Papa  assicurata  in  un  banco 
air  estero  e  colla  liberta  di  seguire  qualunque  opinione  io  volessi. 
Queste  proposite  sono  state  da  mi  rigettate,  come  era  naiurale, 
nessuno  potendomi  impedire  per  qualunque  prezzo  di  dire  la 
verity.  Ma  egli  non  si  dara  per  vinto,  ne  sono  sicuro.  Intanto 
quello  che  maggiormente  li  colpi  nella  lettera  fu  il  secondo 
punto,  cioe  1'  insinuazione  di  formare  i  Vescovi  senza  il  Papa, 
attaccando  il  dritto  della  investitura.  Questo  e  il  punto  che  mag- 
giormente sviluppato  potrebbe  iniziare  questo  governo  a  fare  qualche 
passo  nel  senso  della  lettera." — Letter  of  Signor  Pifferi  to  Canon 
Wordsworth,  August  19th,  1862. 


358    INTERCOURSE  WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.  [1862— 

latter  alternative.  The  nomination  to  the  vacant 
bishoprics  was  given  up  to  the  Pope.  The  oaths 
of  vassalage  which  bind  the  Roman  Catholic 
Bishops  to  the  Pope,  the  fetters  which  fasten  the 
lower  clergy  to  the  bishops,  were  drawn  tighter 
instead  of  being  relaxed  ;  the  priests,  who,  relying  on 
State  protection,  had  been  loyal  to  their  king  in  his 
contest  with  the  Papacy,  were  given  up  defenceless 
to  the  vengeance  of  their  superiors.  Once  again, 
as  often  before,  a  dull  statecraft  played  the  game  of 
the  Papacy  under  the  name  and  in  the  disguise  of 
an  enlightened  liberalism.  Whether  this  policy  was 
the  result  of  simple  blindness  on  the  part  of  the 
minister,  or  whether  some  royal  or  diplomatic  pres- 
sure was  put  upon  him,  or  whether  at  this  supreme 
moment  he  unfortunately  turned  his  eyes  to  America 
rather  than  to  England,  as  the  model  according  to 
which  to  shape  his  measures,  is  not  known  ;  but  the 
policy,  however  originated,  threw  back  the  cause  of 
Church  reformation,  to  which  Ricasoli  was  himself 
attached,  for  at  least  a  generation.  A  hollow  peace 
with  the  national  enemy  was  patched  up  when  the 
opportunity  had  been  given  of  constituting  a  Church 
loyal  to  the  throne  and  in  harmony  with  the  institu- 
tions of  the  country.  One  by  one  the  men  who  had 
made  themselves  conspicuous  in  the  attempt  to 
purify  their  Church  were  either  starved  into  submis- 
sion or  died.  When  the  principle  of  conciliation 
had  1)een  once  adopted,  there  was  no  stopping  in 
the  course  which  had  been  commenced,  and  before 


1 


— 1885.]  ITALY.  359 

long  the  Pope  found  himself,  by  the  action  of  the 
Italian  Parliament,  more  autocratic  than  ever  in 
Italy,  although  it  served  his  purpose  to  play  the  role 
of  the  prisoner  of  the  Vatican.  The  following 
extracts  from  speeches  of  Dr.  Wordsworth  made  at 
meetings  of  the  Anglo-Continental  Society  in  1867 
and  in  1871  show  how  much  he  deplored  the  blunder 
that  had  been  committed  : — 

The  Government,  with  exemplary  self-denial,  has  pro- 
posed to  relinquish  its  claim  to  the  nomination  of  the  chief 
ecclesiastical  dignities  of  Italy.  It  is  willing  to  surrender 
its  nomination  of  the  bishops,  but  to  whom  does  it  surrender 
it .''  Is  it  willing  to  return  to  the  ancient  practice  of  the 
Church  Universal,  and  to  restore  the  free  right  of  electing 
bishops  to  the  clergy  and  laity  ?  Is  it  willing  to  do  what 
was  suggested  by  the  Abbe  Rosmini  ?  On  the  contrary  it 
is  willing  to  deliver  over  to  the  Pope  the  Italian  Church, 
bound  hand  and  foot,  and  to  surrender  the  ancient  rights 
of  the  clergy  and  people  to  the  Papacy.  And  what  does 
it  expect  in  return'.''  It  expects  to  have  a  large  share  of  the 
revenues.  It  would  barter  away  the  liberties  of  the  Church 
in  return  for  a  sacrilegious  confiscation  of  property  which 
had  been  devoted  to  the  honour  and  glory  of  God,  and  to 
the  edification  of  His  people.     (Report  of  Meeting,  1867, 

p.  I4-) 

I  do  not  hesitate  to  say  that  this  very  year,  which  hac; 
closed  the  quarter  of  a  century  of  Pope  Pius's  pontificate,  has 
witnessed  an  exaltation  and  aggrandizement  of  his  spiritual 
supremacy  over  the  civil  power,  which  has  gone  far  to  com- 
pensate him  for  the  blow  which  it  was  believed  had  been 
struck  at  his  temporal  monarchy.  And  why  ?  Because,  as 
you  are  probably  aware,  there  has  been  accomplished  south 
of  the  Alps  what  I  do  not  scruple  to  say  is  a  greater 
revolution  than  has  taken  place  in  France.    By  X}iXQ^fiat  of  the 


36o    INTERCOURSE   WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.  \_i^62— 

Parliament  of  Florence,  which  took  away  from  the  Pope  his 
temporal  power,  a  spiritual  supremacy  has  been  established 
far  greater  than  any  Pope  has  ever  possessed  since  the  days 
of  Hildebrand.     The  Concordat  which  once  controlled  the 
Papacy  has  been  dissolved.     The  temporal  power  formerly 
nominated  the  Bishops  of  Italy,  France,  Spain,  Portugal ; 
but  now  the  Parliament  of  Florence  has  made  a  present  to 
the  Pope  of  the  nomination  to  between  two  and  three  hun- 
dred episcopal  sees.     It  has  given  him  absolute  authority  as 
regards  the  nomination  to  250  sees  south  of  the  Alps,  to  the 
sees  of  Italy  and  of  Sicily.     There  is  no  restraint,  no  regiuin 
placituin,  no  exequatiLv ;  none  of  those  things  by  which  the 
Papacy  was    controlled  for   three  centuries.     The  Italian 
Government  has  utterly    abolished  all   the  rights  of    the 
Italian  bishops  as  regards  the  nomination  or  confirmation 
of  their  comprovincials,  all  the  rights  of  the  clergy  to  elect 
their  bishops,  all  the  rights  of  the  laity  to  approve  of  their 
bishops  when  so  elected.     All  has  been  sacrificed  by  the 
Italian  Parliament  to  the  Pope,  who  is  absolute  master  of 
the  greatest  spiritual  monarchy  that  the  world  has  seen 
since  the  days  of  Hildebrand  or  Innocent  III.    Can  any  one 
congratulate  himself  on  what  must  be  the  result .''     Every 
one  of  these  250  bishops  has  taken   in   the   most  solemn 
manner  an  oath  of  feudal  vassalage  to  the  Pope  ;  he  has 
sworn  to  maintain  his  rights,  "  to  persecute  and  impugn  (that 
is,  assault)  all  heretics,  schismatics,  and  rebels  against  his 
lord  the  Pope."     Besides   the  absolute  control  which   the 
Papacy  has  obtained  over  the  250  bishops,  it  has  gained  a 
similar  control  over  nearly  40,000  priests,  for  the   bishop 
may    of  his    own    mere    will — of    his   own    arbitrary  and 
despotic  power — inhibit  any  priest,  and  so  reduce  him  to 
starvation.     Thus  the  priests  arc  the  slaves  of  their  bishops, 
as  their  bishops  are  the  slaves  of  the  Pope,  in  order  that 
both  may  be  tyrants  over  the  laity.     It  has  been  proved 
that  priests  will  not  give  absolution  to  any  one  who  will  not 
bind   himself  not  to  fight   against  the    Pope  ;  it  has  been 


—1885.]  ITALY.  361 

proved  that  they  will  not  give  absolution  to  those  soldiers 
of  Victor  Emmanuel  who  say  they  will  continue  faithful 
to  the  king.  You  see,  then,  what  a  spiritual  despotism 
has  been  inaugurated  in  the  light  of  the  nineteenth  century. 
People  talk  a  great  deal  about  the  progress  which  has  been 
made  in  our  times,  but  I  see  a  great  deal  of  retrogression  ; 
I  see  a  great  relapsing  into  mediseval  barbarism.  I  see  the 
Italian  Government  abdicating  its  functions  and  sacrificing 
the  rights  of  the  clergy  and  people  of  Italy  to  its  own 
selfish  ambition.  And  what  will  be  the  necessary  result .'' 
Why,  it  must  have  an  infidel  populace,  if  it  sets  up  a  slavish 
and  tyrannical  episcopate  and  a  slavish  and  a  tyrannical 
priesthood.     (Report,  1871,  pp.  5,  6.) 

The  Bishop's  anticipations  were  unhappily  too 
soon  verified.  The  Reconciliation  policy  of  Ricasoli 
crushed  the  Reformation  movement  among  the 
Italian  clergy.  The  power  of  the  Pope,  uncontrolled 
by  any  of  the  checks  which  had  previously  restrained 
it,  spread  Irresistibly  throughout  the  whole  of  the 
Italian  Church,  like  the  waters  of  a  swollen  stream, 
whose  barriers  have  been  removed,  pouring  down 
from  the  mountain  and  submerging  the  plain 
country  below  it.  The  vacant  sees  were  filled  up 
by  men  who  gloried  in  being  the  willing  instruments 
of  the  Roman  Curia,  and  they  made  it  their  first 
work  to  crush  out  the  spirit  of  reform  which  had 
been  strong  enough  and  venturesome  enough  to 
make  the  Vatican  tremble.  They  succeeded.  At 
Naples  300  priests  were  compelled  by  Archbishop 
Riario  Sforza  to  choose  between  unconditional  sur- 
render and  starvation  ;  9000  priests  who  had  signed 
an  address  prepared  by  Padre  Passaglia,  proposing 


362     INTERCOURSE  WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.  \i%(y2— 


to  give  up  the  Temporal  Power,  were  obliged  to 
recant,  and  even  then  they  found  themselves  en- 
rolled in  a  black  book  ;  in  every  corner  of  Italy  the 
Church  reformers  were  hunted  down  and  silenced. 
Mr.  Hogg,  travelling  through  Italy,  found  that  the 
priests,  whose  voices  had  previously  been  loudest  for 
reform,  were  now  hushed  in  terror,  and  that  they 
were  even  afraid  to  receive  a  visit  from  an  English 
friend,  lest  it  should  be  reported  to  their  bishop. 
Finding  themselves  helpless  they  returned  to  the 
old  system,  according  to  which  they  might  believe 
as  they  liked,  and  live  as  they  liked,  provided  they 
said  and  did  nothing  to  the  detriment  of  the  autho- 
rity of  the  Curia.  Priests  became  more  than  ever 
the  slaves  of  the  bishops,  and  the  bishops  were 
more  than  ever  the  slaves  of  the  Pope.  Laymen 
went  their  way  disregarding  both.  A  bitter  feeling 
that  they  had  been  betrayed  took  possession  of  the 
Italian  reformers,  and  they  doggedly  resolved  to  eat 
and  drink  and  sleep  like  their  neighbours,  and  to 
make  no  further  effort  to  amend  what  was  eccle- 
siastically amiss.  Consequently,  when,  a  few  years 
later,  the  decrees  of  the  Vatican  Council  created  a 
revolt  from  Papal  authority  in  Germany,  no  corre- 
sponding movement  exhibited  itself  in  Italy.  The 
Vatican  decrees  were  not  believed  there,  but  they 
were  accepted  with  a  shrug  of  the  shoulders  on  the 
ground  that  experience  had  shown  that  it  was  the 
safest  plan  to  follow  whatever  course  the  Curia  com- 
manded.    Nor  did  any  overt  anti-Papal  action  take 


1885.]  VATICAN  COUNCIL  AND  GERMANY.  363 

place  in  Italy  for  another  ten  years.  Then  Count 
Enrico  di  Campello,  Monsignore  Savarese,  and 
Padre  Curci,  in  their  different  ways,  once  more  struck 
the  chord  of  reform.  With  Savarese  and  Curci, 
specially  with  the  latter,  Bishop  Wordsworth  kept  up 
a  correspondence  down  to  the  year  1884,  and  that 
remarkable  work,  "II  Vaticano  Regio,"  which  pro- 
ceeded from  Curci's  pen,  was  one  of  the  last  books 
on  the  state  of  Continental  Christianity  which  the 
bishop  perused  ;  and  in  it  he  found  many  of  his  own 
predictions  only  too  vividly  realized. 

§   III.  The  Vatican  Council  and  Germany. 
1869— 1885. 

The  year  1870  is  one  that  will  be  ever  memorable 
in  the  history  of  the  Catholic  Church.  It  was  in 
that  year  that  the  final  struggle  took  place  between 
the  two  parties  which  had  been  contending  for 
domination  within  the  Church  of  Rome — the  Ab- 
solutists and  the  Constitutionalists.  A  tendency 
towards  Absolutism,  had  manifested  itself  compara- 
tively early  in  the  history  of  the  Church.  It  had 
created  a  Nicholas  I.,  a  Gregory  VII.,  an  Innocent 
III.,  a  Boniface  VIII.  It  invested  Bishops  of  Rome 
with  a  primacy,  and  then  transformed  that  primacy 
into  a  supremacy.  But  it  had  not  yet  recognized 
the  Roman  Pontiff  as  the  one  universal  Bishop  of  the 
Catholic  Church,  nor  assigned  to  him  a  personal 
infallibility  apart  from  the  episcopate.  This  final 
step    the   Jesuits,  who    had  been  the  ruling  power 


364    INTERCOURSE  WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.  [1869— 

in  the  Church  since  the  year  1850,  determined 
should  be  now  taken.  Pius  IX.  had  already  on 
their  instigation  declared  one  new  article  of  faith  in 
the  year  1854,  the  Immaculate  Conception  of  B.V.M., 
and  he  was  now  to  be  the  willing  instrument 
of  making  himself  infallible  •  and  supreme  in  all 
matters  of  faith  and  morals,  so  far  as  his  own  voice 
and  the  vote  of  the  majority  of  the  bishops  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  Church  could  make  him.  It  was 
not  to  be  expected  that  such  an  event  as  this  would 
take  place  without  attracting  the  attention  and  in- 
terest of  Dr.  Wordsworth.  The  Vatican  Council 
was  summoned  by  the  Bull  "  ^terni  Patris "  on 
June  29,  1868.  Three  months  later,  on  September 
20,  1868,  Dr.  Wordsworth  was  invited  by  Samuel 
Wilberforce,  Bishop  of  Oxford,  to  address  the  can- 
didates for  ordination  at  Cuddesdon,  and  at  the 
Bishop's  request  he  took  for  his  subject  the  proposed 
Council  at  Rome.  In  this  address  he  states  what 
are  the  conditions  of  a  Council  being  a  General  one, 
and  shows  that  at  least  four  of  these  conditions 
would  be  violated  or  at  least  unfulfilled  by  the 
promised  Council.'^  The  real  purpose  of  the  Council 
had  not  been  announced  in  the  Bull  that  summoned 
it,  but  it  was  pretty  well  known  what  that  purpose 
was.     Dr.  Wordsworth  thus  refers  to  it : — 

Wc  cannot,  indeed,  foresee  what  may  be  the  dogmatic 

'  I.  Convocation  by  lawful  authority.  2.  Freedom.  3.  Ac- 
knowledgment of  Holy  Scripture  as  the  final  authority.  4.  Recep- 
tion of  the  Council's  decrees  by  the  whole  of  the  Church. 


—1885.]       VA  TIC  A  N  CO  UNCIL  A  ND  GERMAN  V.  365 

decrees  of  the  proposed  Council.  Some  there  are  who 
foretell  that  it  will  declare  the  Bishop  of  Rome  to  be  per- 
sonally infallible.  And  when  this  Council  is  assembled  at 
Rome,  and  breathes  the  atmosphere  of  Rome,  and  is  im- 
pregnated by  it,  who  can  tell  what  may  be  the  effect  of 
that  potent  influence  upon  it,  and  to  what  lengths  it  may 
be  carried  ? 

It  is  an  unquestionable  fact  that  Bishops  of  Rome  have 
erred,  and  have  fallen  into  heresy ;  Popes  Zephyrinus  and 
Callistus  were  partisans  of  the  Noetian  heresy.  Pope 
Liberius  lapsed  into  Arianism,  Pope  Vigilius  into  Euty- 
chianism,  and  Pope  Honorius  (a.d.  626 — 638)  was  a 
Monothelite  ;  and  in  ancient  times,  even  to  the  seventh 
century,  the  Bishops  of  Rome  themselves,  at  their  ordina- 
tion, in  the  profession  of  faith  which  they  then  made, 
publicly  denounced  and  anathematized  Pope  Honorius  by 
name  as  a  heretic  ;  and  in  that  solemn  formulary  they  then 
modestly  acknowledged  their  own  fallibility;  and  thus 
they  delivered  a  prophetic  protest  from  the  Papal  chair 
itself  against  an  assumption  of  infallibility  on  the  part  of 
any  of  their  successors.  ("  The  proposed  Council  at 
Rome,"  pp.  21 — 23.) 

At  the  very  same  time  that  Dr.  Wordsworth  was 
raising  his  voice  against  the  Council  in  England, 
there  was  being  issued  at  Rome  an  "Apostolic 
Letter  of  our  most  holy  Lord  "  Pius  IX.,  addressed 
"to  all  Protestants  and  other  non-Catholics,"  dated 
September  13,  and  published  September  30,  1868. 
These  Protestants  and  non-Catholics  the  Pope  de- 
scribed as  "not  professing  the  true  faith  of  Christ, 
nor  following  the  communion  of  the  Catholic  Church," 
and  "  visibly  divided  from  Catholic  unity,"  and  he 
exhorted  them  to  take  the  opportunity  of  the  Council 


366     INTERCOURSE   WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.  [1869— 


to  return  to  "the  bosom  of  their  holy  mother  the 
Church,  in  which  their  ancestors  had  found  the 
wholesome  pasture  of  life,  and  in  which  alone  the 
doctrine  of  Jesus  Christ  is  preserved  and  handed 
down  in  its  integrity,  and  the  mysteries  of  heavenly 
grace  are  dispensed."  This  letter  was  published  in 
Latin, "^  and  was  at  once  translated  into  the  languages 
of  the  principal  nations  of  Europe,  and  widely  dis- 
seminated. Dr.  Wordsworth  replied  in  a  most  vigo- 
rous Latin  pamphlet,^  written  with  the  learning  and 
in  the  spirit  of  the  seventeenth  century  divines  of 
the  Church  of  England.  This  he  translated  into 
English,  under  the  title,  "An  Anglican  Answer  to 
the  Apostolic  Letter  of  Pope  Pius  IX."  It  was  also 
translated  into  Italian  and  German,  and  disseminated 
in  Italy  and  Germany  by  the  agency  of  the  Anglo- 
Continental  Society.  The  following  is  a  specimen 
of  this  polemical  tract : — 

Is  it  so,  then,  that  we  do  not  profess  the  true  faith  of 
Christ,  and  that  we  are  to  be  counted  as  heathens  and 
publicans, — we  who  maintain  and  propagate,  to  adopt  the 
language  of  S.  Jude,  "the  faith  once  for  all  delivered  to 
the  saints  "  ?  Is  it  so,  then,  that  we  do  not  profess  the  true 
faith  of  Christ, — we  who  (to  borrow  the  words  of  more  than 
seventy  of  our  bishops  lately  assembled  at  London)  "  em- 

*  "  Sanctissimi  domini  nostri  Pii,  divina  Providentia  I'apos  IX. 
Literal  Apostolicse  ad  omnes  Trotestantes  aliosque  a-Calholicos." 
Romae,  1868. 

^  "  Responsio  Anglicana  Litteris  Apostolicis  Pii  Pap.x  IX.  ad 
omnes  Protestantes  aliosque  a-Catholicos."  London  :  Rivingtons. 
1868. 


—1885.]       VATICAN  COUNCIL  AND  GERMANY.  367 

brace  and  venerate  all  the  Canonical  Scriptures  of  the 
Old  and  New  Testament  as  the  sure  Word  of  God,"  and 
who  deliver  and  commend  them  to  be  read  by  all,  with 
devout  prayer  to  Him  ?  Is  it  so,  that  we  do  not  profess 
the  true  faith  of  Christ, — we  in  whose  land  new  churches 
are  being  daily  built,  and  old  churches  are  restored  and 
enlarged,  in  which  the  pure  Word  of  God  is  publicly  read 
and  preached,  and  the  Sacraments  of  Christ  are  duly 
administered,  and  prayers,  psalms,  and  hymns,  and  spiritual 
songs  are  ever  ascending  unto  God  in  the  Name  of  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  ?  We  will  say  nothing  of  schools,  which 
of  late  years  have  risen  among  us  in  countless  numbers, 
where  our  children  are  trained  in  the  discipline  of  Christ  ? 
We  will  not  speak  of  our  evangelical  missions  to  heathen 
nations,  and  of  the  many  episcopal  sees  founded  by  the 
English  Church  in  our  Colonies.  Is  it  so,  that  we  do  not 
profess  the  true  faith  of  Christ, — we  who  embrace  and  vene- 
rate whatsoever  has  been  established  and  promulgated  in 
matters  of  Christian  Doctrine  by  truly  Oecumenical  and 
General  Councils,  and  received  by  the  Catholic  Church  ? 
If  to  communicate  with  Christ  and  His  Apostles,  and  with 
Apostolical  men,  who  flourished  in  the  earliest  and  purest 
ages  of  the  Church,  and  fell  asleep  peacefully  in  Christ, 
is  not  to  profess  the  true  faith  of  Christ,  then  we  should 
be  glad  to  know,  what  is  that  "  true  faith  of  Christ  ^'  which 
Pope  Pius  IX.  would  now  set  before  us  to  learn  ?  Is  it 
some  faith  of  Christ  that  has  sprung  forth  into  the  world  in 
recent  days,  long  after  the  time  of  Christ  ?  Is  it  some  faith  of 
Christ  which  has  been  devised  by  the  imagination  of  man  ? 
Is  it  some  faith  of  Christ  which  has  been  brought  forth  into 
light  by  the  Roman  Pontiff  out  of  the  cabinet  of  his  own 
breast.    ("An  Anglican  Answer,"  pp.  7,  8.) 

Dost  Thou  suppose  that  Thou  hast  excommunicated  us 
by  these  words.  No,  rather  Thou  hast  excommunicated 
Thyself.  We,  on  our  side,  have  Christ;  we  have  the 
Apostles  ;  we  have  the  Apostolic  and   Universal  Church 


368     INTERCOURSE   WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.  [lUc)— 

of  Christ.  Thou  hast  cut  Thyself  off  from  the  CathoHc 
Church  ;  Thou  hast  separated  Thyself  from  the  com.munion 
of  past  ages  ;  Thou  hast  severed  Thyself  from  Thy  pre- 
decessors, from  the  Apostolic  Churches,  from  the  Apostles  ; 
Thou  hast  severed  Thyself  from  Christ.  Dost  thou  charge 
us  with  fickleness,  dost  Thou  scoff  at  us  for  inconstancy  in 
the  Faith,  and  for  defection  from  the  Church  ?  Take  heed 
that  the  celebrated  Proverb  be  not  applied  to  Thee — 
"  Healer  of  others,  full  of  sores  Thyself" 

("An  Anglican  Answer,"  pp.  i8,  19.) 

It  is  hardly  possible  to  write  the  history  of  this 
period  in  Dr.  Wordsworth's  life  without  making 
some  allusion  to  a  life  which  was,  as  it  were,  running 
parallel  to  it — that  of  the  great  Bishop  Dupanloup, 
of  Orleans. 

In  perusing  the  last  volume  of  that  remarkable 
biography,  we  cannot  fail  to  be  struck  with  the  view 
of  the  "  other  side  of  the  shield,"  and  we  would  ask 
our  readers  to  study  that  volume  as  a  most  interest- 
ing complement  to,  and  commentary  on,  the  present 
biography;  e.g.  there  is  a  conversation  given  between 
the  Bishop  of  Orleans  and  M.  Thiers,  p.  ZZ,  vol.  iii., 
in  which  the  latter  exclaims,  after  praising  the  unity 
of  the  Roman  Church:  "  Voyez  les  eveques  anglicans, 
ils  se  sont  reunis  I'annee  derniere  a  Londres,  mais 
n'ont  pas  pu  s'entendre,  et  se  sont  separ^s  divises  et 
n'ayant  rien  fait."  Then  he  cried  :  "Ah,  le  prochain 
concile,  s'il  est  bicn  fait,  peut  sauver  le  monde." 

The  Anglican  bishops,  it  seems,  who  were  content 
with  rc-affirming  the  primitive  Catholic  faith,  had 
done   nothing.     The  Vatican    Council    undoubtedly 


—  1885.]        VATICAN  COUNCIL  AND  GERMANY.  369 

"did  something',''  but  whether  France  or  Europe 
were  the  better  or  worse  for  the  step,  is  to  us  no 
matter  of  doubt. 

In  Bishop  Dupanloup's  life  we  are  admitted  to 
a  certain  extent  behind  the  scenes ;  we  see  the 
uneasy  forebodings  which  preceded  the  Council,  the 
intrigues  which  accompanied  it,  the  crushing  down 
of  individual  opinion,  which  was  the  price  at  which 
it  was  purchased,  and  the  irritation  and  suspicion 
which  it  caused  in  the  political  world  ;  and  we 
cannot  but  feel  there  is  something  pathetic  in  the 
contrast  between  the  great  French  prelate,  with  his 
zeal,  piety,  learning,  and  force  of  character,  sacrificing 
his  own  personal  convictions  in  order  to  maintain  a 
fictitious  semblance  of  unity,  and  his  English  con- 
temporary, with  his  far  clearer  perceptions  of  the 
essentials  of  Catholicity,  speaking  out  boldly  and 
unflinchingly  in  defence  of  the  Primitive  Apostolic 
Faith.  We  cannot  help  also  contrasting  the  want  of 
national  Church  life  in  France,  especially  the  lack  of 
synodical  action,  with  the  comparative  activity  of 
Convocation  and  other  bodies  in  our  own  country. 

It  was  in  this  year  1868  that  Dr.  Wordsworth 
was  appointed  Bishop  of  Lincoln,  and  his  elevation 
to  the  episcopate,  by  increasing  his  responsibility  in 
relation  to  the  welfare  of  the  whole  Catholic  Church, 
made  him  look  with  still  keener  interest  to  the  issue 
of  the  Vatican  Council.  That  issue  came  in  1870, 
and  by  the  vote  of  370,  of  whom  276  were  Italians, 
out  of  a  total  of  601,  the  Pope  was  declared  infallible 

B  b 


370    INTERCOURSE  WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES,  [im^)— 

when  speaking  ex  cathedra  on  a  matter  of  faith  or 
morals.  The  opposition  to  the  new  dogma  had  been 
led  by  the  German  bishops,  supported  by  Darboy  of 
Paris,  Dupanloup  of  Orleans,  Strossmayer  of  Diak- 
ovar.  After  their  defeat  in  the  Council,  men  asked 
what  these  bishops  would  do.  Bound  by  oaths  of 
vassalage  to  the  Roman  Pontiff,  and  unable  to 
exercise  their  functions  without  his  permission  con- 
stantly renewed,  fearing  too  for  the  unity  of  the 
Church,  which  they  valued  more  than  adherence  to 
the  truth,  they  one  and  all  gave  way.  The  German 
bishops  met  at  Fulda  and  counselled  submission, 
but  among  the  Presbyters  of  the  German  Church 
there  were  men  of  too  great  learning  to  believe  the 
new  dogma,  and  of  too  great  honesty  to  accept  and 
promulgate  what  they  did  not  believe.  Dr.  Dol- 
linger  and  thirteen  associates  met  at  Niirnberg  in 
August,  1870,  and  refused  submission  to  the  novel 
doctrine.  The  Archbishop  of  Munich  demanded 
Bollinger's  adhesion.  Dollinger  replied  by  an  ab- 
solute refusal,  publicly  made,  which  brought  upon 
him  an  excommunication  in  April,  1871.  Thus 
originated  the  Old  Cathohc  community  as  a  body 
separate  from  Rome,  and  at  a  Congress  held  on 
September  22 — 24  of  the  same  year  at  Munich,  a 
commencement  was  made  of  its  organization  upon 
the  lines  of  the  Primitive  Church. 

A  few  weeks  before  the  session  of  the  Vatican 
Council  closed,  when  the  conclusion  at  which  it 
would  arrive  appeared  now  certain,  Bishop  Words- 


—1885.]       VATICAN  COUNCIL  AND  GERMANY.  371 

worth  consulted  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  as  to 
the  propriety  of  the  English  Church  formally  issuing 
a  protest  against  the  dogmas  to  be  promulgated  by 
the  Papal  Council,  and  against  the  assumed  oecu- 
menicity  of  the  Council  itself.  The  archbishop  did 
not  at  that  time  think  it  desirable  to  take  this  step. 
The  Bishop,  therefore,  with  the  purpose  of  calling 
the  attention  of  English  Churchmen  to  the  import- 
ance of  the  event  and  the  duties  laid  upon  them 
by  it,  wrote  and  published  a  letter  addressed  to 
Bishop  Harold  Browne,  then  Bishop  of  Ely,  Presi- 
dent of  the  Anglo-Continental  Society,  in  which  he 
urged  that  the  Anglican  Church  "had  now  a  provi- 
dential mission  such  as  belonged  to  no  other  church 
in  Christendom  in  the  same  degree,"  and  that  it 
"  was  the  duty  of  the  Anglican  Church  to  accomplish 
that  mission."  This  mission  was  "  first  to  exhibit  a 
religious  system,  rational,  scriptural,  and  primitive, 
recognizing  and  expanding  all  the  faculties  of  man, 
and  supplying  all  his  needs,  conducive  to  the  pro- 
gress of  literature,  science,  and  art,  and  ministerial 
to  the  peace  of  households  and  to  the  welfare  of 
society.  Secondly,  to  show  by  its  own  example  that 
a  Christian  Church  might  be  scriptural  and  Catholic, 
maintaining  the  ancient  creeds  of  Christendom,  and 
dispensing  the  Word  and  Sacraments  of  Christ  by  an 
apostolic  ministry,  and  extending  itself  by  Christian 
missions  into  all  parts  of  the  world,  and  in  harmony 
with  the  civil  and  social  institutions  of  a  state  and 
country,  without  being  fettered  and  enslaved  by  the 

B  b  2 


372     INTERCOURSE  WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.  [1869— 


unrighteous  oaths  and  other  servile  bonds  of  vassal- 
age, and  by  the  novel  and  heretical  dogmas  which 
Papal  Rome  imposes  on  its  bishops,  clergy,  and 
people,  and  by  which  she  would  annihilate  the 
divinely  constituted  rights  of  the  Episcopate,  and 
would  subjugate  the  will,  reason,  and  conscience  of 
the  clergy,  and  would  crush  the  liberties  of  the  laity, 
and,  if  she  were  able,  would  place  the  world  beneath 
her  feet,  and  cause  herself  to  be  adored  as  God." 

He  recalled  the  example  of  the  English  reformers 
in  the  sixteenth  century  : — 

When  the  Council  of  Trent  was  sitting,  the  Church  of 
England  did  not  remain  a  passive  spectator.  She  did  not 
wrap  herself  up  in  sullen  independence  and  insular  selfish- 
ness. She  had  a  heart  enlarged  to  the  whole  of  Christen- 
dom. At  that  crisis  Bishop  Jewel  was  encouraged  to  put 
forth  his  celebrated  "  Apologia  "  for  the  Church  of  England. 
It  was  published,  says  Strype,  with  the  royal  sanction  ; 
and  was  authorized  by  archbishops  and  bishops,  and  was 
commanded  to  be  kept  in  churches.  It  was  translated 
into  most  European  languages,  and  was  rendered  into 
English  by  the  mother  of  Lord  Bacon.  It  was  examined 
in  the  Council  of  Trent,  with  a  view  to  its  being  answered 
by  some  of  the  Fathers  of  the  Council  ;  but  no  refutation 
of  it  by  them  ever  appeared. 

Nor  was  this  all:  tlic  Thirty-nine  Articles  themselves,  in 
their  present  form,  were  produced,  if  we  may  so  speak,  by 
the  Council  of  Trent. 

If,  therefore,  we  have  still  among  us  the  spirit  of  those 
holy  men,  to  whose  wisdom,  learning,  piety,  and  zeal  we 
owe,  under  God,  the  blessings  of  the  English  Reformation 
(which  was  not  innovating,  but  restorative),  it  seems,  my 
dear  lord,  to  be  now  a  fit  subject  for  consideration  whether 


— i88s.]       VATICAN  COUNCIL  AND  GERMANY.  373 

we  ought  not  to  imitate  their  example,  not  only  in  refuting 
error,  but  in  public  manifestation  of  the  truth.  Such  a 
course  we  might  hope  would  save  many  souls  from  the 
gulf  of  Infidelity  into  which  they  are  now  in  danger  of 
being  plunged  ;  and  would  commend  the  Church  of  England 
to  the  affection  and  gratitude  of  thousands,  and  to  the 
favour  and  blessing  of  Almighty  God,  as  promoting  both 
at  home  and  abroad  the  cause  of  truth  and  love.  (Letter 
to  Bishop  of  Ely,  June  21,  1870.) 

The  next  year,  on  June  16,  1871,  the  Convocation 
of  Canterbury  did  formally  repudiate  the  authority 
of  the  Vatican  Council  and  the  dogmas  which  it 
promulgated.  On  the  same  day,  at  a  meeting  of 
the  Anglo-Continental  Society,  the  Bishop  expressed 
his  deep  disappointment  at  the  tergiversation  of  the 
German  bishops  : — 

I  did  hope  that  amongst  the  eighty-eight  bishops  who 
withstood,  in  the  name  of  our  common  Catholicity,  that 
monstrous  figment  of  Papal  Infallibility  which  has  been 
forced  upon  the  conscience  of  Western  Christendom, — I 
did  hope  that  some  one  at  least  of  those  eighty-eight 
bishops  would  have  come  forward  to  protest  against  it ; 
but  I  see  with  the  deepest  sorrow  that  out  of  the  seven  or 
eight  hundred  prelates  who,  on  the  8th  of  December,  1869, 
were  summoned  to  take  their  seats  at  the  Vatican  Council, 
not  a  single  one  has  arisen  to  utter  a  word  of  protest 
against  the  monstrous  assumption  of  personal  infallibility 
on  the  part  of  the  Roman  Pontiff.  They  are  all  dumb. 
It  has  been  left  to  a  few  noble-hearted  French  priests,  like 
Pere  Hyacinthe  and  Pere  Gratry,  and  to  that  noble  septua- 
genarian. Dr.  Dollinger,  who  has  with  such  erudition, 
wisdom,  and  understanding  maintained  the  truth  in  his 
letter  to  his  own  archbishop,  the  Archbishop  of  Munich. 
For  such  reasons  as  these  I  believe  that  God  has  a  mission 
for  the  Church  of  England.     (Report  of  Meeting,  1871.) 


374    INTERCOURSE  WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.\\Z(i^— 

The  Bishop  did  more  than  any  other  man  except 
Bishop  Harold  Browne  to  awaken  the  Church  of 
England  to  the  responsibility  of  the  mission  of  which 
he  thus  spoke.  Two  days  before  the  Old  Catholic 
Congress  at  Munich,  on  September  20,  1871,  he  pre- 
sided over  his  Diocesan  Synod  at  Lincoln,  and  there 
at  his  instance  a  resolution  was  adopted  expressive  of 
sympathy  with  the  Old  Catholics  of  Germany,  and 
he  was  requested  by  the  Synod  to  address  to  them 
a  letter,  assuring  them  of  the  interest  felt  for  them 
by  the  Synod  in  their  work,  and  the  hope  that  it 
entertained  of  their  success.  The  letter  was  grate- 
fully acknowledged  by  Dr.  Von  Schulte,  President 
of  the  Munich  Congress.  A  few  weeks  later  the 
English  Church  Congress  was  held  at  Nottingham, 
and  here,  too,  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln,  who  presided 
over  it,  pleaded  the  cause  of  the  Old  Catholics. 
Next  year  the  secretary  of  the  Old  Catholic  com- 
mittee invited  Bishop  Wordsworth  to  attend  the 
approaching  Congress  which  was  summoned  to  meet 
at  Cologne.  The  Bishop,  with  the  deference  which 
he  always  displayed  towards  constituted  authorities, 
consulted  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  and  the 
Cathedral  Chapter  of  Lincoln,  and  then  accepted 
the  invitation  in  a  Latin  letter,  in  which  he  did  not 
"hesitate  to  say  that  we  who  have  been  nurtured  in 
the  bosom  of  the  Church  of  England,  and  who  by 
the  mercy  of  God  have  enjoyed  signal  blessings  in 
her  communion  for  many  generations,  should  hardly 
deserve  to  be  regarded  as  worthy  of  the  name  of 
Christians  if  we  did  not  wish  you  '  God-speed,'  and 


-1885.]       VATICAN  COUNCIL  AND  GERMANY.  375 


heartily  pray  for  your  success,  and  endeavour  to 
afford  you  our  aid  to  the  best  of  our  power."  He 
recalled  the  friendly  interest  shown  by  the  Synod  of 
Lincoln  and  the  Nottingham  Congress,  declared 
English  Churchmen  to  be  the  Old  Catholics  of 
England,  and  ended  by  deprecating  the  retention 
by  the  German  Old  Catholics  of  the  creed  of  Pope 
Pius  IV.,  and  by  urging  an  appeal  to  Holy  Scrip- 
ture as  interpreted  by  antiquity,  and  recourse  to 
prayer. 

When  he  was  on  the  point  of  starting  for  Cologne, 
the  Bishop  received  a  letter  from  Pere  Hyacinthe 
(M.  Loyson)  asking  him  to  take  up  the  question  of 
the  celibacy  of  the  clergy,  and  to  support  his  right 
to  be  regarded  as  a  Catholic  priest,  and  worthy  to 
be  received  at  the  Congress  of  Cologne,  in  spite  of 
his  recent  marriage.  In  consequence,  the  Bishop 
wrote  a  Latin  letter  to  the  president  of  the  Con- 
gress, defending  clerical  marriage  by  citing  ancient 
precedents,  the  practice  of  the  Eastern  Church,  and 
the  precepts  of  S.  Paul.  This  letter  he  despatched 
from  Bruges.  M.  Loyson  presented  himself  at  the 
Congress,  and  no  objection  was  made  to  him  on  the 
ground  of  his  being  a  married  priest. 

A  few  days  before  the  Congress  opened  at 
Cologne  the  Bishop  paid  a  visit  to  Bonn,  where  he 
held  with  some  leading  Old  Catholics  a  private  pre- 
liminary conference,  attended  by  members  of  the 
Russian  Church  and  English  Churchmen.  At  this 
conference,  which  was  commenced  with  an  adapta- 
tion of  the  prayer  commonly  used  at  the  opening  of 


376    INTERCOURSE  WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.  [1869— 


the  session  of  the  English  Provincial  Synod, ^  the 
Bishop  urged  the  advisableness  of  beginning  the 
Congress  with  a  form  of  prayer,  which  he  suggested 
should  consist  of  the  reading  of  Gal.  i.  7 — 9  ;  Eph. 
iv.  I — 6;  2  Tim.  iii.  14 — 17;  i  Peter  iv.  11  — 13; 
Jude  3  ;  followed  by  the  Nicene  Creed,  the  Veni 
Creator,  the  Lord's  Prayer,  and  2  Cor.  xiii.  14. 
This  proposal  was  too  unaccordant  with  German 
custom  to  be  acceptable  all  at  once.  For  the 
present  it  was,  however,  determined  that  each  section 
of  the  Congress  should  meet  separately  each  morn- 
ing for  the  suggested  prayers  before  the  public 
meeting  commenced. 

A  preliminary  gathering  of  a  hospitable  character 
took  place  at  Cologne  on  September  19,  at  which, 
in  addition  to  the  leading  German  Old  Catholics, 
Archbishop  Van  Loos,  of  Utrecht,  and  the  Bishops 
of  Ely,  Lincoln,  and  Maryland  were  present.  At 
this  meeting  Bishop  Wordsworth  assured  his  auditors 
that  prayers  would  be  offered  for  them  in  the 
cathedral  church  of  Lincoln,  and  in  the  800  churches 
of  his  diocese,  adding, — 

In  conclusion,  let  nie  say  that  I  trust  by  the  blessing  of 
God  it  may  come  to  pass  that  we  may  not  only  be  per- 

Pater  luminum,  ct  Fens  omnis  sapientise,  concede  propitius 
ut  Spiritus  Sanctus,  Qui  Concilio  dim  Apostolico  aspiravit, 
dcliberationes  nostras  dirigat,  ducatque  nos  in  omnem  veritatem 
quae  est  secundum  pietatem ;  ut  Fidem  Apostolicam  et  ver^ 
Catholicam  firmiter  et  constanter  teneamus  omnes.  Tibique  pure 
cultu  intrepide  serviamus,  per  Jesum  Christum,  Dominum 
Nostrum.     Amen, 


— 1 885  .J        VA  TIC  AN  CO  UNCIL  A  ND  GERMANY.  yjj 

mitted  to  pray  for  you,  but  to  pray  with  you.  The  time 
may  come,  I  trust,  when  we  may  all  be  united  with  you  in 
the  same  Church,  in  the  same  Scripture,  in  the  same 
prayers,  and  in  the  same  sacraments,  and  that  having 
worshipped  one  God  through  one  Divine  Saviour,  and  by 
the  inspiration  of  one  Spirit  upon  earth,  we  may  after- 
wards, when  this  transitory  life  is  over,  be  permitted  to 
stand  together  with  you  and  sing  praises  for  ever  and  ever, 
to  the  Blessed  and  Undivided  Trinity  in  eternal  glory  as 
beatified  spirits  before  the  Throne  of  Grace.  (Letter, 
p.  44.) 

The  next  morning  the  formal  sessions  of  the 
Congress  began,  and  after  an  address  by  the  presi- 
dent. Von  Schulte,  and  from  Archbishop  Van  Loos, 
Bishop  Wordsworth  spoke  in  Latin,  to  which  he 
gave  the  foreign  pronunciation.  He  began  by 
pointing  to  the  example  of  the  English  reformers, 
who  were,  in  truth,  Old  Catholics,  and  declared  that 
the  cause  of  the  excommunication  of  the  Church  of 
England  by  the  Bishop  of  Rome  was — 

Because  we  resolved  to  return  to  Christ  and  His  Apostles ; 
because  we  determined  to  resort  to  the  Holy  Scriptures 
and  to  the  Ancient  Creeds  of  the  Church,  pure  and  in- 
corrupt, and  to  enjoy  the  Sacraments  of  Christ,  not  muti- 
lated, but  entire  ;  and  because  we  renounced  and  rejected 
the  errors,  corruptions,  novelties,  and  superstitions  which 
were  repugnant  to  the  authority  of  Christ  and  His  Apostles, 
and  of  the  Primitive  Church.  The  Bishop  of  Rome  ex- 
communicated us  because  we  would  not  communicate  with 
him  in  his  errors  ;  but,  by  excommunicating  us,  he  not 
only  excommunicated  us,  but  in  that  respect  he  excom- 
municated the  Primitive  Church,  he  excommunicated  the 
Apostles,  and,  with  reverence  be  it  said,  he  excomm.uni- 
cated  Christ ;  and  by  excommunicating  Christ  he  excom- 


378    INTERCOURSE  WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.  [1869— 

municated  himself,  he  cut  himself  off  from  the  Catholic 
Church.     (Letter,  p.  54.) 

His  advice  to  the  German  Old  Catholics  was : — 

Do  what  is  in  your  power  to  restore  the  Primitive 
Church.  Circulate  the  Holy  Scriptures  in  your  mother 
tongue,  that  they  may  be  heard  and  read  by  all.  Let  the 
Creeds  of  the  Ancient  Church,  pure  and  unadulterated,  be 
recited  by  all  in  your  religious  assemblies.  Let  the  Gospel 
be  preached  to  all,  and  the  Sacraments  of  Christ,  un- 
mutilated  and  unalloyed,  be  administered  to  all.  (Letter, 
P-  55-) 

The  following  day  the  Bishop  received  the  leading 
members  of  the  Congress  at  a  dinner,  at  which 
kindly  speeches  were  made  by  one  and  another 
advocate  of  unity,  Grace  being  said  by  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Utrecht.  At  the  conclusion  of  this  enter- 
tainment Bishop  Wordsworth  took  occasion  to  invite 
those  present  to  England,  promising  them  a  hos- 
pitable reception,  and  in  conclusion  proposed  the 
following  sentiment : — "  May  it  please  God  to  unite 
all  Churches  in  the  true  faith  and  love  of  our  common 
Lord  and  Saviour,  the  Divine  Head  of  the  Church 
— Jesus  Christ !  May  the  motto  of  us  all  be, 
'  Unitas  in  Vej^itate  ./ '  " 

On  his  return  to  England  the  Bishop  published  a 
"  Letter"  to  the  clergy  and  laity  of  the  diocese  of 
Lincoln,  recounting  the  impressions  he  had  received 
from  his  visit  to  Cologne,  which  he  sums  up  thus : — 

The  movement  of  the  Old  Catholics  in  Germany  appears 
to  be  a  part  of  the  Divine  plan  for  the  gracious  purposes 
of  neutralizing  the  disastrous  influences  of  Papal  despotism, 


—  1885.]        VATICAN  COUNCIL  AND  GERMANY.  379 

and  of  its  necessary  results — Unbelief  and  Anarchy  ;  and 
for  the  salvation  of  many  souls  from  the  shipwreck  which 
now  threatens  society. 

On  such  grounds  as  these  let  us  not  uncharitably  dis- 
parage it,  because  as  yet  its  day  may  be  "  the  day  of  small 
things  ;  "  but  let  us  heartily  thank  God  for  it,  and  let  us 
pray  Him  to  bless  and  direct  it.     (Letter,  p.  74.) 

A  consequence  of  the  Congress  of  Cologne  was 
the  appointment  of  a  Committee  on  Reunion,  a  sub- 
committee of  which  was  constituted  in  December, 
1873,  consisting  of  Dr.  Von  Dollinger,  Professor 
Friedrich,  Professor  Maassen,  Bishop  Harold  Browne, 
Bishop  Wordsworth,  Professor  Mayor,  and  Canon 
Meyrick.  The  action  of  this  sub-committee,  which 
was  appointed  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  on  a 
correspondence  between  its  German  and  English 
members,  led  to  the  two  Bonn  Conferences  of  1874 
and  1875,  which  Dr.  Von  Dollinger  called  with  the 
object  of  forming  a  basis  on  which  the  non-Romish 
members  of  the  Catholic  Church  might  combine. 
Bishop  Wordsworth  was  not  able  to  attend  the 
conferences  at  Bonn,  or  the  Old  Catholic  congresses 
of  Constance  and  Freiburg,  held  in  1873  ^^^  18/4' 
but  his  interest  was  keenly  awake  to  the  great  issues 
which  were  at  stake.  In  some  graceful  Latin  lines 
he  declined  the  invitations  to  Constance  and  Frei- 
burg. The  progress  of  events  at  the  Bonn  Con- 
ference was  w^atched  by  him  with  anxiety,  and 
when,  on  the  petition  of  the  Anglo-Continental 
Society,  the  results  of  those  conferences  were 
brought  before  Convocation,  he  spoke,  in  succession 


38o    INTERCOURSE  WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.  [1869— 

to  the  Bishop  of  Winchester,  warmly  commending  to 
the  sympathies  of  the  English  Church  the  cause  of 
intercommunion  with  Orientals  and  Old  Catholics. 

The  opposition  exhibited  in  some  quarters  in  Eng- 
land and  the  stiffness  of  some  of  the  theologians  of 
the  Oriental  Church,  discouraged  Dr.  Von  Dollinger 
from  carrying  further  the  effort  so  hopefully  begun 
at  Bonn.  And  now  commenced  the  most  trying 
time  for  the  Old  Catholics,  when  they  had  to  hold 
their  own  and  consolidate  themselves  without  the 
impulse  of  the  first  enthusiasm  which  had  set  them 
on  foot,  and  without  their  having  the  great  role  to 
play  which  had  at  the  outset  attracted  the  admi- 
ration of  Europe.  During  this  time  the  Bishop's 
interest  in  their  welfare  did  not  flag.  He  steadily 
supported  the  Anglo-Continental  Society,  which  had 
been  from  the  beginning  the  medium  of  communi- 
cation between  English  Churchmen  and  the  foreign 
reformers,  and  he  took  advantage  of  every  occasion 
that  offered  itself  to  cherish  kindly  relations  and 
induce  harmonious  action.  In  1878,  when  the 
Lambeth  Conference  was  held,  the  important  task 
of  drafting  the  paragraph  in  the  report  which  re- 
ferred to  the  attitude  of  the  Church  of  England 
towards  foreign  churches  was  committed  to  him. 
This  paragraph  was  adopted  by  the  Conference,  and 
since  that  time  it  has  been  accepted  as  embodying 
the  principle  which  should  guide  the  action  of 
members  of  the  Church  of  England.  It  runs  as 
follows  : — 


i 


—  i88s.]        VATICAN  COUNCIL  AND  GERMANY.  381 

We  gladly  welcome  any  effort  for  reform  upon  the  model 
of  the  Primitive  Church.  We  do  not  demand  a  rigid  uni- 
formity ;  we  deprecate  needless  divisions  ;  but  to  those  who 
are  drawn  to  us  in  the  endeavour  to  free  themselves  from 
the  yoke  of  error  and  superstition,  we  are  ready  to  offer  all 
help,  and  such  privileges  as  may  be  acceptable  to  them  and 
are  consistent  with  the  maintenance  of  our  own  principles, 
as  enunciated  in  our  formularies. 

The  principle  thus  laid  down  by  the  Lambeth  Con- 
ference was  formally  adopted  by  the  bishops  of  the 
American  Church  in  the  year  1880,  who  also  resolved 
"  that  the  great  primitive  rule  of  the  Catholic  Church 
— Episcopates  zinus  est,  cujns  a  singulis  in  soliduui 
pars  tenetw — imposes  upon  the  episcopates  of  all 
National  Churches  holding  the  Primitive  Faith  and 
order,  and  upon  the  several  bishops  of  the  same,  not 
the  right  only,  but  the  duty  also,  of  protecting  in  the 
holding  of  that  faith  and  the  recovering  of  that 
order  those  who  .  .  .  have  been  deprived  of  both." 

In  1882  the  Anglo-Continental  Society  invited  the 
two  Old  Catholic  bishops,  Bishop  Reinkens  of 
Germany,  and  Bishop  Herzog  of  Switzerland,  to 
England.  Bishop  Wordsworth  was  not  able  to 
attend  a  meeting  at  Cambridge,  where  they  were 
received  by  the  Bishop  of  Winchester,  the  Bishop  of 
Ely,  and  the  authorities  of  the  University ;  but  he 
invited  them  to  RIseholme,  where  they  became  his 
guests,  and  attended  a  meeting  held  at  the  Bishop's 
Hostel,  Lincoln,  over  which  he  himself  presided. 
At  this  meeting  the  Bishop  having  recalled  the 
ancient  ecclesiastical  relations  which  existed  between 


382    INTERCOURSE  WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.\\%iz— 

England  and  Germany,  and  between  England  and 
Switzerland,  pointed  out  the  essential  difference 
between  the  position  of  Old  Catholic  bishops  on 
the  Continent  and  that  of  Roman  bishops  in 
England. 

This  was  the  last  occasion  on  which  the  Bishop 
had  intercourse  with  the  Old  Catholic  leaders. 

§  IV.  Greece  and  the  Oriental  Church. 
1833— 1883. 
We  have  already  spoken  of  Dr.  Wordsworth's 
interest  in  the  Greek  Church,  which  may  be  said  to 
have  dated  from  his  visit  to  that  country  in  1833. 
The  acquaintance  which  he  made  with  bishops  and 
priests  and  laymen  during  this  visit  added  a  personal 
element  to  the  interest  which,  in  any  case,  he  would 
have  taken  as  a  theologian  and  a  student  of  history 
of  the  Church  of  the  East,  whence  Christianity  was 
transmitted  to  the  West — the  Church  which  was 
the  mother  of  Athanasius,  Chrysostom,  Basil,  and 
Gregory,  and,  in  later  times,  the  antagonist  of  Papal 
usurpations.  Accordingly  he  watched  with  anxiety 
and  satisfaction  the  process  of  the  creation  of  the 
National  Church  of  Greece  proper,  independent  of, 
and  yet  in  subjection  to,  the  Patriarch  of  Constanti- 
nople, and  he  was  always  ready  to  hold  out  a  hand 
of  fellowship  to  Greek  Churchmen,  while  not  shutting 
his  eyes  to  the  defects  of  the  Oriental  Church  or  the 
partial  corruption  of  its  doctrine.  His  own  words 
addressed  to  the  Upper   House  of  the  Convocation 


—1883.]     GREECE  AND  THE  ORIENTAL  CHURCH.        383 

of  Canterbury  will  best  explain  his  position  towards 
them  : — 

I  am  perfectly  aware  that  there  are  persons  who  take 
pleasure  in  dwelling  on  the  errors  and  corruptions  of  the 
Eastern  Church.  Now,  I  do  not  by  any  means  ignore 
those  errors  and  corruptions,  but  I  would  rather  adopt  the 
words  of  Archbishop  Howley,  a  prelate  remarkable  alike 
for  piety,  learning,  and  charity,  of  whom  it  is  recorded  that 
when  some  person  reminded  him  of  certain  corruptions  and 
practices  that  prevailed,  he,  in  the  true  apostolic  spirit  and 
with  tears  in  his  eyes,  said,  "  I  know  it,  but  I  also  know 
perfectly  well  that  we  owe  the  tenderest  commiseration  to 
persons  like  the  members  of  the  Eastern  Church,  who  have 
been  in  a  state  of  bondage  for  many  centuries."  And  then 
he  quoted  these  two  lines  from  Homer : — 

"  "H/Litcri;  7ap  t'  dpeT^]<;  aTToalvvrai,  evpvoTra  Zeu? 
^Avepo'?,  €vT   av  (Xiv  Kara  SovXiov  rjfxap  eXjiaiv."  ^ 

He  expressed  himself  in  like  manner  in  the 
following  year  in  his  Preface  to  the  Life  of  Arch- 
bishop Lycurgus. 

Acting  upon  these  principles.  Dr.  Wordsworth 
gladly  executed  the  commission  entrusted  to  him  by 
Archbishop  Longley,  of  translating  into  Greek  the 
Lambeth  Encyclic  of  1867,  together  with  a  letter  of 
brotherly  salutation  addressed  by  the  archbishop  to 
the  patriarchs  of  the  Orthodox  Church,  both  of 
which  were  transmitted  to  the  East  by  the  agency 
of  the  Anglo-Continental  Society.  Eleven  years 
later  he  translated  in  like  manner  the  Encyclic  of 
the  second  Lambeth  Conference,  at  the  instance  of 
Archbishop  Tait. 

'•  Speech,  1S76. 


384    INTERCOURSE   WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES,  [i^y 


In  1870,  Alexander  Lycurgus,  Archbishop  of 
Syros  and  Tenos,  came  to  England  for  the  purpose 
of  consecrating  a  church  for  his  co-religionists  in 
Liverpool.  The  occasion  was  seized  both  by  him- 
self and  by  members  of  the  Church  of  England  to 
improve  the  understanding  between  the  two  Churches 
of  Greece  and  England.  His  first  visit  was  paid  to 
Mr.  Gladstone  at  Hawarden,  the  next  to  the  Arch- 
bishop of  York  at  Bishopsthorpe,  and  then  he 
proceeded  to  Riseholme.  Here  the  Bishop  of 
Lincoln,  after  receiving  him  with  the  ceremonious 
courtesy  to  which  an  Eastern  prelate  is  accustomed, 
presented  to  him  Mrs. Words  worth  and  his  daughters. 
"IIoWaKaXd,''  cried  the  archbishop,  ''/caret to  dp^alov 
e^o?"  (Verv  well,  this  is  according  to  primitive  custom). 
In  the  evening,  the  archbishop,  accompanied  by 
two  archimandrites  and  a  deacon,  attended  prayers 
in  the  chapel,  and  was  delighted  by  the  bishop 
reading  the  Second  Lesson  in  Greek,  with  the 
pronunciation  made  use  of  in  Greece  at  the  present 
day,  and  reciting  the  Nicene  Creed  in  like  manner 
in  the  original  Greek.  At  the  close  of  it  he  ex- 
claimed, "  yevono^  yeVotro,"  with  much  fervour.  The 
Greek  form  of  the  Creed  not  containing  the  words 
"and  from  the  Son,"  which  were  interpolated  in 
the  Latin  form,  and  were  made  use  of  first  in 
Spain,  the  archbishop  rejoiced  to  join  with  an 
Anglican  bishop  in  the  recitation  of  the  Symbol 
of  the  Church  as  it  was  used  in  his  own  cathedral 
at    Syros,     and     on     coming     out     of    the     chapel 


■1883.]  GREECE  AND  THE  ORIENTAL  CHURCH  385 


seized  both  hands  of  the  bishop  and  thanked  him 
with  tears  in  his  eyes.  The  bishop's  power  of 
conversing  with  the  archbishop  without  the  inter- 
vention of  an  interpreter,  as  well  as  his  readiness  to 
act  himself  as  interpreter  for  his  guest  when  it  was 
needed,  was,  throughout  this  visit,  a  great  satisfac- 
tion to  the  archbishop. 

It  happened,  fortunately,  that  the  archbishop's  visit 
coincided  in  time  with  the  consecration  of  Dr.  Mac- 
kenzie as  Suffragan  Bishop  of  Nottingham.  On 
February  2nd,  therefore,  the  Feast  of  the  Purifica- 
tion, the  Riseholme  party  proceeded  to  Nottingham, 
where  the  consecration  was  to  take  place.  The 
church  appointed  for  the  ceremony  was  S.  Mary's, 
Nottingham  ;  the  Bishops  of  London,  Lincoln,  Lich- 
field, and  S.  Andrew's  were  the  consecrating  prelates. 
The  Archbishop  of  Syros,  the  two  archimandrites,  and 
the  deacon  were  placed  within  the  communion-rails 
on  the  south  side  of  the  altar,  and  this  position  they 
occupied  during  the  whole  of  the  consecration  and 
communion  service,  standing  reverently  according 
to  the  Oriental  custom  throughout  the  time.  Next 
to  them  stood  the  present  Archbishop  of  Canterbury, 
at  that  time  examining  chaplain  to  the  Bishop  of 
Lincoln.  After  the  religious  services  were  concluded, 
and  the  clergy  had  v/ithdrawn  to  the  vestry,  the 
archbishop  threw  his  arms  round  the  neck  of  the 
newly-consecrated  Chorepiscopus,  and  gave  him  the 
kiss  of  peace,  exclaiming  "  I  trust  that  when  the 
great  day  comes,  you  will  be  able  to  give  a  good 

c  c 


386    INTERCOURSE  WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.  [1883— 

account   of  the   stewardship    this  day  entrusted  to 
you. 

In  the  afternoon  the  bishop  entertained  his  Eastern 
guests  at  a  dinner-party  in  the  Nottingham  Town 
Hall,  at  the  close  of  which  the  bishop  proposed 
Archbishop  Lycurgus'  health,  recalling,  after  his 
manner,  the  various  historical  occurrences  which  had 
served  to  bind  the  Anglican  and  Oriental  Churches 
together,  and  ending  with  a  Greek  address,  delivered 
with  great  distinctness,  with  the  modern  Greek  pro- 
nunciation. 

The  archbishop  replied  expressing  his  joy  and 
thankfulness  for  the  love  displayed  to  him  and  to 
the  Orthodox  Church  in  his  person;  "and  let  us," 
said  he,  "  be  the  first  to  give  the  watchword  of  that 
unity  which  is  so  much  to  be  desired  and  prayed  for, 
carefully  mending  again  the  robe  of  Christ,  rent  now 
as  it  never  ought  to  be  rent,  and  is  being  rent  in  our 
own  days  more  and  more,  on  one  side  by  the  Western 
pride,  which  impiously  and  licentiously  claims  for 
itself  the  glory  of  God,  and  confounds  the  peace  of 
the  whole  Church  and  tears  asunder  the  bond  of 
Christian  love,  and  on  the  other  side  by  a  spirit  of 
ill-understood  liberty,  which  cuts  away  with  a  daring- 
hand  all  bonds  of  union  with  the  ancient  Church, 
and  overthrows  the  very  idea  of  the  One  Holy,  Catho- 
lic, and  Apostolic  Church.  Agreeing  thus  in  the 
unity  of  the  Faith  by  love,  let  us  fulfil  those  words 
of  the  Apostle,  "  One  spirit,  and  one  body,  as 
also   ye    were   called    in   one  hope  of  your  calling; 


< 


—1883.   GREECE  AND  THE  ORIENTAL  CHURCH.  387 

one  Lord,  one  Faith,  one  Baptism,  one  God  and 
Father,  who  is  above  all,  and  through  all,  and  in 
you  all." 

After  parting  at  Nottingham,  the  bishop  and  Arch- 
bishop Lycurgus  met  no  more.  Just  before  leaving 
England  the  archbishop  wrote  : — 

I  am  going,  God  willing,  straight  to  Constantinople, 
where  I  shall  joyfully  recount  to  the  CEcumenical  Patriarch 
all  that  I  have  seen  and  heard  here,  and  above  all  shall  im- 
part at  length  to  his  Holiness  the  love  which  you,  so  noble, 
so  philorthodox,  so  philhellenic,  have  displayed,  and  in 
every  respect,  my  beloved  brother  in  Christ,  I  will  do  all 
that  is  in  my  power  to  co-operate  for  the  holy  object  of  the 
unity  of  the  Churches.  For  this  is  the  will  of  our  Saviour. 
This  our  Oriental  orthodox  Church  prays  for  night  and 
day.  This  all  Avho  are  minded  like  Christ  and  live  like 
Christ  are  seeking.  Yes,  and  they  shall  obtain  what  they 
seek,  I  am  sure  of  it,  through  the  grace  and  love  of  Him 
who  was  made  man  and  who  suffered  for  us.  His  blessing 
again  I  invoke  upon  your  house. 

Shortly  after  his  return  to  the  East,  in  acknow- 
ledgment of  "the  magnificent  hospitality,"  as  he 
termed  it,  which  he  met  with  in  England,  the  arch- 
bishop sent  presents,  characteristic  of  the  East,  to 
several  of  his  hosts  and  friends,  and,  among  others,  to 
the  Bishop  of  Lincoln.  Those  which  the  bishop 
received  consisted  of  cameos  of  mother-of-pearl,  re- 
presenting the  Birth,  Baptism,  and  Resurrection  of  our 
Blessed  Lord,  and  abas-relief  of  the  Transfiguration; 
of  rings  and  ornamental  chains  for  the  bishop's 
family;    of   Greek    honey    and  Eastern  sweetmeats. 

c  c  2 


388  INTERCOURSE   WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.   [—1833 

The    bishop  acknowledged    these   gifts    in    the    fol- 
lowing lines : — 

TtOi    nANI€PuJTATCOe    APXI€niCKOnWt  CYPOY 

KAI  THNOY  AA€ZANAPa)t 

XPICT04)0P0C  eniCKOnOC   AirKOANIAC 

XAIP€IN    €N    KYPIOOi. 


Xatpe  yu.ot    EAAt^vwi'  AoytoWare,  \olp^  KpancrTe 

Ap^iepev,  aefjLvrj'i  av6o<;  op.rjXLKirj';. 
Aujpa  (xedev  ^apUvTa,  cro<f)rj?  Te)(yd(TfxaTa  ;(€tpos, 

rjcriracrdjxiqv  IXapwi/  dyKaAtVtv  TrpaTriSwi/. 
MiKTO.  StSoJS  ^ovOwv  rj^ucfxaaiv  epya  [xeXio'crwi', 

7j8vX6yov  yX(ioar(Tr]<;  crvfxfSoXa,  kol  c^tXtas' 
©avfiar   eSwpr^aoj  AevKats  TeTVTriafxeva  Koy^at?, 

ayXaa  (TrjfxeLtDV  Sety/xara  ^ecrTrecrtajv. 
Tov  0€ON  eK  re  06OY  yevvw/xevov  dvSpa  OewpCj, 

d^Onov  Ik  Oavdrov  irpwroTOKOV  vi.KVwv. 
Evo-apKov  ySaTTTta/xa  AOFOY  Kai  pevfjLa  Se8opKa 

nN€YMAXOC  ayvior^ev  4'woSoTou  ^apirr 
©arjua^w  XPICXOY  SotJJ  crriXfSovTa  (^aeivrj 

eL/xara,  Kat  fji(Dvi]v  (T)(^L^ofxivrj<;  ve<J3eXr]';. 
AaKrvXiov;,  op/xous  t€,  cjitXyj'i  evoTrjTOS  dyaXp.a, 

yy}9o(Tvvai<;  napa  aov  ^cpalv  i8e$d[xtOa. 
n  0€OC  elpi'jvrj?,  8ot'r;s  Sea/xoLaiv  evov(r$<u 

AyyXov;  '  EXXrjcriv  rrj';  dydiTiq<i  dXvTOi^' 
Et^€  /(xtai'  IIirrTtv,  p.i'av  EA.7rtSa,  (TVVTr]povvT^<; 

(xvvvaini.fji€v  dei  TrarptS'  l-rvovpaviav. 

The  archbishop  preceded  the  bishop  to  "  the 
heavenly  country  "  by  some  ten  years,  having  taken 
an  active  part  in  the  very  year  before  he  died  in 
the  second  Conference  at  Bonn,  at  which  were 
drawn  up  six  articles  of  agreement  on  the  subject 
of  the  Procession  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  which  has 
so  long  kept  the  Churches  of  the  East  and  West 
asunder. 


—1883.]  GREECE  AND  THE  ORIENTAL  CHURCH.  389 

The  effect  of  Archbishop  Lycurgus'  representation 
of  what  he  had  witnessed  and  experienced  in  England 
was  very  great  in  drawing  out  the  sympathies  of  the 
Church  of  Greece  proper,  and  of  Turkey,  towards 
English  Churchmen.  The  following  is  the  testimony 
of  an  English  Chaplain  on  the  Levant  on  this 
point : — 

I  found  during  ten  years'  residence  in  the  East  as  a 
chaplain  in  her  Majesty's  service  that  the  favourable  re- 
port given  by  Archbishop  Lycurgus  (of  Syros)  of  the  recep- 
tion his  Holiness  had  received  in  England,  and  notably  from 
the  late  Bishop  of  Lincoln,  had  ensured  for  our  Church  the 
most  kindly  and  considerate  regard.  Whenever  the  Bishop 
of  Gibraltar  came  to  Smyrna  I  accompanied  him  in  visits 
to  the  Greek  and  Armenian  bishops,  and  on  the  3rd  and 
6th  of  May,  1875,  invited  them  to  assist  him  and  Bishop 
Gobat  of  Jerusalem  in  the  consecration  of  our  two  cemeteries 
there.  They  attended  with  their  clergy  and  delivered 
touching  addresses  to  their  own  people,  who  had  come  in 
large  numbers  to  witness  the  ceremonies.  In  true  Christian 
and  brotherly  affection  they  spoke  of  our  branch  of  the 
Catholic  Church.  I  venture  to  affirm  that  this  could  not 
have  happened  in  former  years,  nor  the  spectacle  have  been 
witnessed  of  Oriental  prelates  seated  side  by  side  with 
Anglican  bishops  in  the  sanctuary  and  during  the  service 
of  our  church.  The  courtesy  shown  to  Archbishop 
Lycurgus  on  his  visit  to  England  paved  the  way  for  such 
interchange  of  godly  feeling.  (Letter  of  Rev.  J.  D'om- 
brain.) 

In  1880  the  writer  of  the  above  letter,  the  Rev.  J. 
D'ombrain,  resigned  his  chaplaincy  at  Smyrna  and 
took  charge  of  a  parish  in  the  diocese  of  Lincoln. 
This  event  served  as  an  occasion  for  an  interchange  of 


390    INTERCOURSE  WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.  [1833— 


kindly  communications  between  Bishop  Wordsworth 
and  Archbishop  Constantine  Chrysopolios,  Metro- 
poHtan  of  Smyrna,  and  Melchizedech,  Armenian 
Archbishop  in  the  same  city.  The  two  archbishops 
ofave  letters  of  commendation  to  Mr.  D'ombrain  for 
him  to  present  to  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln  as  a  brother 
bishop  in  the  Church  of  Christ.  Archbishop  Mel- 
chizedech is  an  accomplished  linguist  and  a  man  of 
considerable  learning,  who  received  part  of  his  edu- 
cation in  Germany,  and  his  commendatory  epistle 
refers  to  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln's  remarkable  labours 
in  the  study  of  Holy  Scripture,  and  speaks  with  deep 
gratitude  of  his  sympathy  with  the  Eastern  Church. 
Bishop  Wordsworth  saw  plainly  that  if  our  rela- 
tions to  foreign  Churches  were  to  be  put  upon  a 
proper  basis,  influence  must  be  brought  to  bear,  not 
only  on  French,  Italian,  German,  Swiss,  and  Oriental 
Churchmen,  but  also  and  above  all  on  the  Church  of 
England  herself.  With  the  view  of  taking  his  part 
in  this  work  he  joined  the  Anglo-Continental  Society 
very  soon  after  its  institution  in  the  year  1853,  and 
served  on  its  committee  until  his  death.  He  was 
always  ready  to  support  its  president,  Bishop  Harold 
Browne,  at  the  public  meetings  of  the  Society.  He 
permitted  no  fewer  than  twenty  books  or  pamphlets 
of  which  he  was  the  author,  to  be  published  by  it  in 
various  languages,  and  to  Isaac  Casaubon's  letter  to 
Cardinal  Perron  on  "The  Faith  and  Unity  of  the 
Christian  Church,"  and  to  Archbishop  Lycurgus' 
Life  he  supplied  prefaces.     One  of  his  works  pub 


—1883.]  GREECE  AND  THE  ORIENTAL  CHURCH.  391 


lished  by  the  Society  in  French  and  Italian  was 
"  Theophilus  Anglicanus,"  the  French  version  of 
which  was  sent  by  him  to  every  bishop  in  France, 
accompanied  by  a  Latin  letter  from  the  author ;  the 
Italian  version  of  his  "-Three  Letters  to  a  Statesman  " 
was  presented  to  every  member  of  the  Italian  Parlia- 
ment. His  Anglican  reply  to  Pope  Pius  IX.  was 
circulated  in  six  languages — Latin,  French,  Italian, 
German,  Greek,  and  Icelandic.  Not  only  in  con- 
nection with  this  Society,  but  also  in  Convocation, 
in  Church  Congresses,  in  Conferences,  and  elsewhere 
Bishop  Wordsworth  co-operated  with  Bishop  Harold 
Browne  in  awakening  the  mind  of  the  English  Church 
to  her  duties  towards  the  members  of  other  National 
Churches.  It  is  indeed  mainly  due  to  these  two  far- 
sighted  prelates  that  on  the  one  hand  so  great  an  ad- 
vance has  been  made  upon  the  Continent  and  in  the 
East  in  apprehending  the  true  character  and  position 
of  the  Church  of  England,  and  on  the  other  that  the 
Church  of  England  has  herself  been  awakened  to  her 
responsibilities  as  a  part  of  the  Church  Catholic,  and 
that  men  have  come  to  see  that  she  has,  as  such,  a 
mission,  not  only  to  the  people  of  England,  but  to 
Christendom  at  large. 

We  miust  not  quit  this  subject  without  reminding 
ourselves  and  our  readers  that  not  only  did  Bishop 
Wordsworth  show  his  active  sympathy  and  his  wonted 
munificence  in  regard  to  foreign  Churches,  but  he 
made  their  welfare  the  object  of  his  constant  prayers. 
Among  his  children's  earliest  recollections    are    the 


392      INTERCOURSE  WITH  FOREIGN  CHURCHES.  \\\ 


fervent  Sunday- morning  petitions  both  for  the  Western 
Churches  and  "the  once-glorious  Churches  of  the 
East."  Among  their  latest  are  the  solemn  words  with 
which,  on  Sunday  evenings,  in  the  Chapel  at  Rise- 
holme,  he  was  wont  to  precede  the  three-fold  bene- 
diction, committing  to  God's  merciful  protection 
"this  household  and  parish,  this  city  and  diocese, 
the  Church  of  England,  the  Church  Universal,  and 
the  lu/iole  family  of  mankind^  Fit  words  for  one 
who  every  year  he  lived,  seemed  to  grow  more  and 
more  in  sympathy  with  all  God's  creatures,  and  to 
desire  more  fervently  His  blessing  upon  them. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

LITERARY    WORK. 

For  several  reasons  the  literary  side  of  Dr.  Words- 
worth's work  ought  to  be  brought  out  prominently  in 
his  "  Life  ;"  first,  of  course,  on  account  of  the  reputa- 
tion which  he  achieved  as  a  man  of  letters  ;  then,  as 
illustrative  of  that  extraordinary  mental  activity  which 
enabled  him  to  ply  his  pen  as  busily  as  ever  in  spite 
of  the  overwhelming  burden  of  work  which  an 
unwieldy  diocese  entailed  upon  him  ;  but  chiefly 
because  his  own  life  and  character  are  thoroughly  re- 
flected in  his  works.  Though  he  scarcely  ever  wrote 
about  himself,  all  his  writings  are,  at  least  to  those 
who  can  read  between  the  lines,  a  sort  of  auto- 
biography. 

He  was  a  most  voluminous  writer,  and  in  the  later 
part  of  his  life  especially  his  busy  pen  was  constantly 
called  into  exercise  about  questions  which  were  of 
great  importance  at  the  time,  but  have  now  been 
thoroughly  threshed  out.  He  frequently — perhaps 
generally — took  the  unpopular  side,  but  in  all  his 
battles  he  never  forgot  the  laws  of  Christian  courtesy  ; 
his  writings,  like  his  words  and  actions,  were  always 
those  of  the  true  Christian  gentleman.  And  hence 
those  who  disagreed  with  him  most  always  respected 


394  LITERARY  WORK.  [1836— 

him  ;  his  pen  raised   against   him   many  opponents, 
but,  so  far  as  we  are  aware,  no  enemies. 

His  first  group  of  writings  ^  of  any  note  were  con- 
nected with  classical  subjects.  They  include  "Athens 
and  Attica"  (1836),  "Pompeian  Inscriptions"  (1837), 
and  "Greece,  Pictorial  and  Descriptive"  (1839). 
In  his  work  on  "  Pompeian  Inscriptions"^  he  broke 
ground  hitherto  untouched  by  scholars,  in  decipher- 
ing inscriptions  traced  by  a  hard  stylus  on  the  cement 
of  the  walls  of  Pompeii.  The  felicity  with  which 
some  of  these  careless  scratches  of  ill-taught  slave  or 
idle  passer-by  are  thus  illustrated  after  an  interval  of 
nearly  2000  years,  is  not  only  valuable  in  its  im- 
mediate results,  but  affects  us  with  a  strange  sense 
of  the  unity  and  continuity  of  human  life.  The 
brocJuirc  published  on  this  occasion  has  been  spoken 
of  in  high  terms  by  Garrucci,  Lenormant,  Mommsen, 
Zangermeister,  and  others,  and  may  be  found  re- 
printed in  the  author's  "  Miscellanies,"  and,  in  a 
more  portable  form,  in  his  "  Conjectural  Emenda- 
tions."    His  works  on  Greece,  "  Athens  and  Attica," 

'  His  earliest  jDublication  "  On  the  admission  of  Dissenters  to 
graduate  in  the  University,"  appeared  in  1834,  when  he  was  a 
Fellow  of  Trinity.  This  was  followed  by  an  "  Installation  Ode  " 
(Marquis  of  Camden,  Chancellor  of  Cambridge)  in  1835.  His 
first  published  sermon  was  a  ''  Spital  Sermon  "  (giving  the  argu- 
ment in  favour  of  Christianity  from  hospitals),  preached  before  the 
Lord  Mayor  in  1838.  The  Master  of  Trinity,  who  had  been  asked 
to  preach,  begged  that  his  son  might  be  allowed  to  take  his  place. 

■  "  Inscription es  Pompciance,  or  Specimens  and  Fac-similes  of 
Ancient  Writing  on  the  \\^alls  of  Pompeii."  Murray,  1837  and 
1846. 


—1 839-]  WORKS  ON  GREECE.  395 

and  "  Greece,  Pictorial  and  Descriptive,"  are  well 
known.  Both  these  books,  which  were  most  favour- 
ably received,  still  hold  their  ground.  "  Athens 
and  Attica*'  passed  into  a  second  edition  in  1837. 
In  the  preface  he  indicates  that  he  had  a  larger  work 
in  view  on  the  whole  country.  This  was  undertaken 
for  Messrs.  Orr  and  Co.,  Paternoster  Row  (who 
were  introduced  to  him  by  the  late  Lord  Lytton,  as 
desirous  of  publishing-an  illustrated  book  on  Greece), 
and  came-  out  in  1839.  It  w^as  afterwards  repub- 
lished by  Mr.  Murray,  and  in  1841  translated  into 
French  and  published  at  Paris  by  E.  Regnault.  It 
has  passed  through  many  editions,  and  has  recently 
been  thoroughly  revised  by  a  very  competent  au- 
thority (Rev.H.  F.  Tozer,  Fellowof  Exeter  College), 
who  has  frequently  expressed  his  admiration  of  the 
original  work.  One  of  the  most  interesting  points 
in  the  book  is  the  ingenious  guess,  or  rather  the 
shrewd  deduction,  which  fixed  the  site  of  Dodona, 
many  years  before  its  actual  discovery,  at  the  ruins 
of  an  old  city  (about  eleven  miles  south-west  of 
Janina)  near  a  place  called  Dramisus,  which  he 
visited  on  September  12,  1832,  in  company  with  Mr. 
R.  Monckton  Milnes,  afterwards  Lord  Houghton  ; 
and  few  things  gratified  Bishop  Wordsworth  more  in 
his  old  age  than  the  discoveries  (published  in  1878 
by  M.  Constantine  Carapanos),  which  irrefragably 
confirmed  those  conclusions.^ 

^  See  the  last  edition  of  "  Greece  "  and  "  Conjectural  Emenda- 
tions," p.  37. 


396  LITERARY  WORK.  [1839— 


In  our  own  day  when  a  visit  to  Greece  is  an  ordi- 
nary feat  for  the  University  man  in  his  Easter  vaca- 
tion, and  when  photography  has  brought  the  marvels 
of  Hellenic  art  within  the  reach  of  us  all,  we  are  apt 
to  forget  the  difficulties  which  beset  travellers  fifty 
years  ago,  when    the    glow^ing    stanzas   of  "  Childe 
Harold  "  were  fresh  in  the  public  mind,  and  when  the 
enthusiasm  for  Greece  was  at  its  height.  Of  that  enthu- 
siasm the  young  Fellow  of  Trinity  had  his  full  share. 
For  him,  if  for  any  man  of  his  day,  Greece  lived  in 
the  pages  of  her  poets  and  historians,  and  amid  the 
inextinguishable  beauty  of  her  sculpture  and  ceramic 
art,  and    the   still   legible  inscriptions  of  her   ruins. 
Every  page  of  the  book  teems  with  happy  illustra- 
tions from  the  Greek   dramatists ;  it  has,  moreover, 
all   the  charm    and  freshness   of  a  sketch  done  on 
the   spot,  and  the  accuracy  and  firmness  of   touch 
which  belong  only  to  the  well-trained  eye  and  hand. 
Yet  here,  as  everywhere,  the  thought  of  Christianity, 
if  not  predominant,  was  never   long  absent  from  his 
mind.      In  the  city  of  Socrates,   or  while  gazing  on 
the   Stadium  and  Amphitheatre  of  Corinth,  such  a 
traveller  could  not  forget — which  of  us  could  forget  ? 
— the  presence  of  S.  Paul. 

In  1 84 1  Dr.  Wordsworth  published  a  volume  of 
Harrow  sermons  and  "  Preces  Selectae  "  for  the  use 
of  Harrow  School,  as  well  as  a  "  Manual  for  those 
about  to  be  Confirmed."  These  are  noticeable  as  in- 
stances of  the  revival  of  that  interest  in  the  spiritual 
welfare  of  our  public  schools  of  which  so  striking  an 


1842.]  BENTLEY'S  CORRESPONDENCE.  397 

example  was  being  set  by  his  brother  Wykehamists, 
Dr.  Arnold  at  Rugby  and  Dr.  Moberly  at  Win- 
chester. In  the  same  year  he  published  King 
Edward  VI.'s  Latin  Grammar,  which  maintained 
its  place  as  the  standard  text-book  in  most  schools 
until  the  publication  of  the  Latin  Primer.  It  was 
based  upon  the  old  Eton  Latin  Grammar,  and  was 
highly  esteemed  by  Dean  Gaisford  and  other  eminent 
scholars.  It  was  published  as  a  companion  to  his 
brother  Charles'  "  Grsecae  Grammaticae  Rudimenta," 
which  was  founded  upon  the  old  Eton  Grammar,  and 
still  holds  its  ground. 

1842  saw  the  publication  of  the  "  Correspondence 
of  Richard  Bentley."  This  work  had  been  designed 
by  Dr.  Monk,  Bentley's  biographer ;  but  on  his 
appointment  to  the  See  of  Gloucester,  Bishop  Monk 
passed  on  the  papers  which  he  had  collected  to  Mr. 
John  Wordsworth,  who  was  busily  employed  upon 
the  work  up  to  the  time  of  his  last  illness.  Upon 
his  death  his  brother  Christopher  took  up  the  task, 
and  one  can  well  understand  that  to  a  man  who  so 
loved  the  classics  the  labour  spent  upon  the  corre- 
spondence of  the  first  critic  and  classical  scholar  of 
his  day  would  be  indeed  a  labour  of  love ;  nor  would 
the  thought  that  the  correspondent  was  one  of  the 
many  illustrious  men  who  had  filled  the  post  which 
his  own  father  was  then  filling  lessen  his  interest  in 
his  task.  It  may  be  added  that  the  preface  contains  a 
brief  memoir  of  his  brother  John,  written  with  sin- 
gularly good  taste  and  with  severe  self-suppression. 


398  LITERARY  WORK.  [1843. 

We  next  come  to  a  volume  which  has  per- 
haps been  the  most  widely  influential  of  all  Dr. 
Wordsworth's  compositions.  "  Theophilus  Angli- 
canus,"  published  in  1843,  ^'^.d  in  the  first  in- 
stance a  very  modest  aim.  It  was  intended 
simply  to  instruct  the  author's  pupils  at  Harrow 
in  the  elements  of  Church  principles ;  but  Dr. 
Wordsworth  even  then  seems  to  have  foreseen  the 
possible  importance  of  the  work  and  the  consequent 
necessity  of  being  particularly  careful  in  his  state- 
ments, for  he  enlisted  the  aid  of  two  of  the  best 
Churchmen  of  the  day,  Joshua  Watson  and  his  own 
father,  the  Master  of  Trinity,  to  revise  the  proof- 
sheets.  He  also  procured  the  written  approval  of 
Dr.  Howley,  as  archbishop  of  the  province,  and  Dr. 
Blomfield,  as  bishop  of  the  diocese  in  which  it  was 
published. 

"Theophilus  Anglicanus ''  exactly  met  a  deeply- 
felt  want,  which  no  man  was  better  able  to  supply 
than  Dr.  Wordsworth.  In  1843  the  revival  of 
Church  principles  by  the  Oxford  movement  had  met 
with  a  serious  check,  owinp"  to  the  secession  of  some 
of  the  most  prominent  men  in  that  movement  to  Rome. 
Rome  was  regarded  in  many  quarters  as  the  ultimate 
bourne  of  men  who  were  really  contending  for  such 
principles  as  were  held  by  the  great  Caroline  divines. 
It  was  necessary  that  those  who  would  successfully 
combat  this  notion  should  be  thoroughly  well  ac- 
quainted with  the  writings  of  the  primitive  fathers, 
and  also  with  those  of  the  great  divines  of  the  Church 


1843.]  "  THEOPHILUS  ANGLIC  ANUS  r  399 

of  England.  Now,  perhaps  no  man  living  fulfilled 
all  these  conditions  so  completely  as  Dr.  Wordsworth 
did.  The  extremest  partisans  could  hardly  suspect 
him  of  any  leaning  towards  Rome.  He  was  so 
notably  honest  and  outspoken  that  no  one  could 
dream  of  thinking  that  he  had  any  other  object  than 
that  which  appeared  upon  the  surface.  On  the  other 
hand,  like  his  father  and  Joshua  Watson  and  many 
more  men  of  that  date  than  is  commonly  supposed, 
he  had  the  firmest  grasp  of  distinctive  Church  prin- 
ciples, and  he  was  w^ell-read  beyond  most  men  of  his 
day,  both  in  early  Church  history  and  in  the  history 
of  our  own  branch  of  the  Church. 

The  plan  of  "  Theophilus  Anglicanus  "  is  admir- 
ably adapted  for  the  purpose  which  the  author  had  in 
view.  This  was  to  give  the  young  Churchman  a  clear 
and  definite  conception,  first  of  the  Church  Catholic, 
then  of  the  Anglican  branch  of  the  Church,  and  of  her 
true  position  as  regarded  Rome  on  the  one  side  and 
the  various  Protestant  sects  on  the  other  ;  and  finally 
of  her  connection,  as  the  National  Church  of  England, 
with  the  civil  power. 

These  objects  were  best  secured  by  adopting  the 
method  of  question  and  answer ;  and  after  every 
answer,  quotations  from  standard  divines  are  cited, 
generally  in  full,  and  not  merely  in  references  which 
not  one  reader  in  a  hundred  would  take  the  trouble 
to  verify.  The  early  fathers  of  the  Church  are  most 
frequently  laid  under  contribution  ;  next  to  these  the 
great  English  divines  of  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth 


400  LITERARY  WORK.  [1844. 


centuries,  especially  the  seventeenth.  Hooker  is  the 
most  frequently  quoted  ;  next  to  him,  Barrow,  San- 
derson, and  Isaac  Casaubon  ;  to  the  last  name  Dr. 
Wordsworth  seems  to  take  a  special  pleasure  in  re- 
ferring ;  and  no  wonder,  considering  the  argument 
which  that  great  scholar's  religious  experiences 
supply  for  the  strength  of  the  position  occupied  by  the 
English  Church.  The  book  was  greeted  by  a  sonnet 
from  the  aged  Poet  Laureate ;  and  in  1861  was 
translated  into  French  by  Dr.  Wordsworth's  valued 
friend.  Dr.  Godfray,  and  sent  to  all  the  French 
Bishops,  and  other  eminent  persons.  There  is  also 
an  American  edition  of  it  entitled,  '' Theophilus 
Americanus,"  adapted  to  the  circumstances  of  the 
Church  in  the  United  States. 

Dr.  Wordsworth's  excellent  edition  of  Theocritus 
(1844)  will  be  dealt  with  in  connection  with  its  re- 
appearance in  1877  in  a  fuller  form.  The  "  Diary 
in  France  "  *  (1845)  and  the  "  Letters  to  M.  Gondon  " 

4  Letter  from  Dr.  Wordsworth.,  Af aster  of  Trinity,  to  W.  Words- 
worth, Esq. — "  By  the  way,  you  will  not  be  sorry  to  hear  what  the 
Duke  of  Wellington's  opinion  is  of  Christopher's  '  Diary.'  '  What, 
my  Lord  Duke,  is  your  opinion  of  the  state  of  matters  on  the  Con- 
tinent— in  France,  Germany,  &c. — in  respect  particularly  to  religion, 
&c.  ? '  So  asked  Gerald  Wellesley,  the  clergyman,  formerly  chap- 
lain to  Bishop  Van  Mildert,  one  morning  at  breakfast.  '  Think,' 
replies  the  Duke  ;  '  1  think  very  ill  of  it.  I  think  they  are  in  a 
very  sad  condition.  But  I  have  been  reading  a  book  by  Dr. 
Christopher  Wordsworth — his  "  Diary  " — and  I  like  it  much.  You 
must  read  it,  and  there  you  will  see  what  I  think  and  what  you 
ought  to  think.'  This  we  have  twice  over,  from  persons  to  whom 
(}erald  Wellesley  told  it.  I  wonder  how  much  Sir  Robert  Peel 
would  like  the  book  if  he  were  to  read  it  V 


1 85 1.]      MEMOIRS  OF  WILLIAM  WORDSWORTH.  401 

(1847)  have  been  treated  in  connection  with  Dr. 
Wordsworth's  intercourse  with  foreign  Churches  ; 
and  the  two  series  of  Hulsean  Lectures  (1847  and 
1848)  will  be  touched  upon  in  connection  with  his 
sermons  generally.  The  next  work,  therefore,  that 
now  demands  our  attention  is  "The  Memoirs  of 
William  Wordsworth,"  published  in  1851.  Con- 
sidering the  great  fame  of  the  subject  of  these 
volumes,  the  intimacy  which  had  subsisted  between 
the  uncle  and  the  nephew,  and  the  strong  sympathy 
which  the  latter  had  with  the  mind  and  character  of 
the  former,  it  might  have  been  expected  that  this 
would  have  been  one  of  the  most  successful  of  all 
Dr.  Wordsworth's  works.  But,  from  the  publisher's 
point  of  view  at  least,  this  was  not  the  case.  On 
the  one  hand  it  must  be  remembered  that  the  life  of 
William  Wordsworth  was  singularly  barren  of  ex- 
ternal incident  and  dramatic  situation.  Compared, 
for  instance,  with  that  of  Walter  Scott,  a  storehouse 
of  racy  anecdotes,  quaint  characters,  and  entertaining 
letters,  it  contrasted  as  markedly  with  Lockhart's  de- 
lightful work,  as  the  "  Prelude  ''  and  "Excursion  "  did 
with  the  "  Waverley  "  novels.  Compared  again  with 
the  life  of  such  a  man  as  Goethe,  the  sober  domestic 
happiness  of  the  poet  of  Rydal  could  never  offer 
such  a  field  for  the  biographer  as  the  picture  which 
the  highly  emotional  and  singularly  versatile  and 
many-sided  author  of  the  "Dichtung  und  Wahrheit  " 
has  given  us  of  himself.  The  poet  Wordsworth's  real 
biography  lay  in  "  the  growth  of  his  own  mind,"  and 

D    d 


402  LITERARY  WORK.  [1853. 


this  he  has  himself  written  in  his  works.  Again, 
the  very  reverence  which  the  nephew  felt  for  the 
uncle,  and  the  dislike  of"  personal  talk  "  ^  which  was 
almost  traditional  in  the  family,  stood  in  the  way  of 
his  reproducing  the  mere  chit-chat  and  gossip  which 
it  would  not  have  been  difficult  to  collect  in  the  case 
of  such  a  man  ;  while  he  stood  too  near  him  both  in 
personal  and  mental  relationship  to  be  well  qualified 
to  write  a  critical  analysis  of  his  works. 

Yet  when  allowance  for  all  this  has  been  made  we 
still  venture  to  think  the  Memoirs  of  William  Words- 
worth, if  published  somewhat  later,  when  the  poet's 
fame  had  had  time  to  grow  and  his  works  become 
better  known,  would  have  produced  a  greater  effect 
on  the  public.  The  book  will  well  repay  a  careful 
study,  as  the  best  commentary  on  the  poems,  as  well 
as  for  the  extracts  from  the  charming  journal  of  Miss 
Wordsworth  in  Vol.  I.,  and  the  poet's  admirable 
letters  on  education  in  Vol.  II.,  while  the  personal 
reminiscences  at  the  end  bring  the  man's  truest  and 
best  self  before  us. 

In  1853  I-^^'  Wordsworth  published  a  small  volume 
to  which  a  singular  interest  is  attached,  owing  to  the 
light  which  it  throws  upon  a  little  known  period  of 
early  Church  history,  and  to  the  critical  acumen 
it  displays.  The  volume  is  entitled  "  S.  Hippolytus 
and  the  Church  of  Rome  in  the  Third  Century.'' 
It  was  called  forth  by  the  publication  of  an  important 
Greek  treatise  ascribed  to  Origen,  under  the  title  of 

^  See  the  sonnets  so  entitled. 


1853- J  S.  HIPP0LY7US.  403 

"  Philosophumena,  or  a  Refutation  of  all  Heresies." 
Though  brought  to  Paris  from  Mount  Athos  as  early 
as  1842,  this  was  not  published  till  1851,  when  it  was 
first  printed  (curiously  enough  at  Oxford)  by  M. 
Emmanuel  Miller  of  the  Royal  Library  at  Paris. 
The  book  at  once  produced  a  sensation,  only  paral- 
leled in  our  own  time  -by  the  appearance  of  the 
later  chapters  of  S.  Clement's  Epistle,  and  the 
"  Teaching  of  the  Twelve  Apostles."  The  author- 
ship of  Origen  was  soon  seen  to  be  doubtful.  Among 
others  the  book  was  attributed  to  S.  Hippolytus, 
Bishop  of  Portus.  Dr.  Wordsworth  embraced  this 
opinion,  first  propounded,  we  believe,  by  Archdeacon 
Churton,  with  much  earnestness,  and  defended  it  with 
great  ingenuity  and  learning. 

The  question  was  one  of  deep  interest  to  him,  not 
merely  or  mainly  as  a  question  of  ancient  history, 
but  as  affecting  another  question  of  pressing  modern 
importance,  that  of  Papal  Infallibility.  S.  Hippolytus 
had  been  canonized  as  a  saint  and  martyr  by  the 
Roman  Church.  When  his  statue  was  discovered 
in  1 55 1  it  was  restored  and  removed  to  the  Vatican 
by  the  then  Pope,  Pius  IV.  And  yet  in  the  "  Re- 
futation of  all  Heresies,"  two  of  the  heretics  who  are 
refuted,  Zephyrinus  and  Callistus,  are  two  successive 
Bishops  of  Rome.  If  S.  Hippolytus  was  the  author, 
that  refutation  was  written  by  a  learned  bishop  and 
theologian  of  the  Roman  Church,  and  a  scholar  of  the 
great  S.  Irenaeus,  and  the  bearing  of  this  fact  upon 
the  question  of  Papal  Infallibility  is  sufficiently  obvious. 

D  d  2 


404  LITERARY  WORK.  [1855. 

The  volume  brought  the  author  into  controversy 
with  two  men  of  great  mark,  for  both  of  whom  he 
had  the  deepest  personal  respect.     Soon  after  its  first 
publication  it  was   attacked  with  some    severity  by 
C.  C.  J.  Bunsen  in  the  Preface  to  the  second  edition 
of  his  work  on  "  Hippolytus  and  his  Age,"  published 
in  1854.      Bunsen  thought  that  his  earlier  book  had 
not  been  treated  with  sufficient  respect,  and  com- 
plained that  his  authority  had  been  ignored.     He 
was  likewise  out  of  sympathy  with  Dr.  Wordsworth's 
ecclesiastical    conservatism,  though    agreeing    with 
him  on  the  question  of  the  authorship  of  the  book. 
The  Canon  of  Westminster   defended  himself  in  a 
pamphlet  entitled  "  Remarks  on  M.  Bunsen's  Work, 
1855,"     in    which    he    showed    something    of    that 
sarcastic  spirit  which,    but    for    the    check   that  he 
gradually  learnt  to  put  upon   it,   would  undoubtedly 
have  been  a  conspicuous  feature  of  his  intellectual 
character.     Some  years   later,  another  theologian  of 
high   repute,   Dr.    Ignatius   von   Dollinger,   tried    to 
weaken    the   force    of  the    anti- Papal    argument  by 
asserting    that   Hippolytus  was   himself  a  Novatian 
heretic,   and    in    fact    the  first  anti-Pope.     In    1880 
Dr.  Wordsworth   issued  a  new  edition  of  his  work 
on  S.   Hippolytus,  in  which  he   dealt   with  Dr.  Von 
Dollinger's  objections,  but  evidently   with  great  re- 
luctance, for  he  concludes  :  — 

I  should  have  been  very  thankful  to  have  been  spared 
the  necessity  of  makin<;-  any  other  comments  than  those  of 
assent  on  what  has  been  said  on  the  subject  by  a  person 


1 8 56.]  CO^MMENTARY  ON  THE  BIBLE.  405 

who  is  justly  regarded  by  members  of  the  English  Church 
with  such  deep  feelings  of  veneration  and  affection,  both  on 
public  and  private  grounds,  as  Dr.  Von  Dollinger. 

On  the  other  hand,  Dr.  Martin  Routh,  the 
venerable  President  of  Magdalen  College,  Oxford, 
characterized  Dr.  Wordsworth's  "  excellent  and 
talented  book  on  S.  Hippolytus"  as  the  "  production 
of  a  writer  better  acquainted  with  primitive  anti- 
quities than  any  I  had  supposed  to  exist  among  us." 

Passing  over  the  "  Notes  at  Paris,"  which  have 
been  described  in  the  chapter  on  Dr.  Wordsworth's 
intercourse  with  foreign  Churches,  and  the  Boyle 
Lectures  (1854),  which  form  the  Fifth  Series  of  the 
"  Occasional  Sermons "  preached  in  Westminster 
Abbey,  we  next  come  to  what  must  be  regarded  as, 
in  more  senses  than  one,  his  magnum  opus,  the 
Commentary  on  the  Bible. 

His  mind  had  evidently  been  inclining  for  some 
time  towards  this  great  enterprise  ;  for,  as  we  shall 
see  when  we  come  to  consider  his  sermons,  he  fre- 
quently selected  subjects  which  maybe  regarded  as 
a  kind  of  prefatory  excursion  towards  the  Com- 
mentary. Indeed,  in  order  to  trace  out  the  sequence 
of  Dr.  Wordsworth's  mind,  it  would  be  necessary  to 
deal  with  many  of  his  sermons  before  the  Commen- 
tary ;  but  as  both  the  sermons  on  the  Interpretation 
and  Inspiration  of  the  Bible  and  the  Commentary  on 
the  Bible  take  precisely  the  same  view,  the  latter 
being  simply  an  amplification,  not  a  modification  or 
development  of  the  earlier,  it  is  more  convenient  to 


4o6  LITERARY  WORK.  [1856  — 

consider  all  the  sermons  together,  and  not  to  separate 
those  which  bear  on  the  special  subject  of  the  Com- 
mentary from  the  rest. 

In  1856  the  Four  Gospels  and  the  Acts  of  the 
Apostles  were  published;  in  1859  the  Epistles  of 
S.  Paul  arranged  chronologically;  and  in  i860  the 
General  Epistles  and  the  Book  of  Revelation.  The 
Greek  text  was  "  not  a  reprint  of  that  hitherto 
received  in  any  impression  of  the  New  Testament." 
Dr.  Wordsworth  "  endeavoured  to  avail  himself  of  the 
collations  of  the  MSS.  which  had  been  supplied  by 
others,  and  to  offer  to  the  reader  the  result  at  which 
he  arrived  after  an  examination  of  these  collations." 

It  would  be  presumptuous,  as  well  as  out  of  place 
in  a  biography,  to  attempt  to  offer  any  minute  criti- 
cism or  analysis  of  a  work  of  this  magnitude  ;  it  must 
suffice  to  make  some  general  remarks  on  the  author's 
qualifications  for  the  task  and  his  method  of  carrying 
it  out. 

And,  in  the  first  place,  we  must  never  lose  sight 
of  Dr.  Wordsworth's  standpoint.  Those  who  think 
that  the  Bible  should  be  studied  like  any  other  book, 
that  the  mind  which  is  brought  to  bear  upon  the 
matter  should  be  a  tabula  7'asa  open  to  receive  any 
impression  that  may  be  made  upon  it,  approach  the 
subject  from  an  entirely  different  point  of  view.  Dr. 
Wordsworth  expressly  declares  at  the  outset  that  he 
regards  "  Biblical  criticism  as  a  high  and  holy  science, 
qualifying  man  for  the  discharge  of  the  duties  of  life 
and  for  the  enjoyment  of  the  bliss  of  eternity.'' 


—1872.]  COMMENTARY  ON  THE  BIBLE.  407 

It  is  most  important  to  notice  for  whose  use  the 
Commentary  was  in  the  first  instance  written.  It 
was  designed  especially  for  the  use  of  students  in 
schools  and  colleges,  and  candidates  for  Holy  Orders, 
and  for  such  the  expositor  thinks  it  "  his  first  duty  to 
supply  them  with  food  derived  from  Scripture  itself, 
for  the  hallowing  of  their  affections  and  for  elevating 
their  imaginations,  and  for  nourishing  their  piety 
and  animating  their  devotion,  and  for  enabling  them 
to  see  and  recognize  with  joy  that  Holy  Scripture 
best  interprets  itself  and  supplies  the  best  discipline 
for  the  mind  as  well  as  satisfies  all  the  aspirations  of 
the  soul."  ^  He  is  very  explicit  on  the  point  that  an 
expositor  requires  that  moral  and  spiritual  prepara- 
tion which  none  but  the  Holy  Spirit  can  afford.  "If 
Scripture  is  to  be  believed,  we  are  sure  that  no  one 
can  rightly  interpret  it  without  the  aid  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  by  whom  it  was  written."  He  must  also  bow 
reverently  to  the  voice  of  the  Church.  "  The  ancient 
fathers  of  the  Primitive  Church  are  the  guides  whom 
he  will,  above  all,  follow.  In  matters  of  doctrine,  the 
province  of  expositors  of  the  New  Testament  is  to 
hand  down  the  sacred  deposit  of  ancient  interpreta- 
tion, illustrated  by  clearer  light,  and  confirmed  by  the 
solid  support  of  a  sound  and  sober  criticism."  "It 
is  an  illusive  hope  that  advances  can  be  made  in  the 
work  of  sacred  interpretation  by  the  instrumentality 
of  any  who  reject  the  expositions  of  Scripture  re- 
ceived by  ancient  Christendom,  and   who  propound 

^  Preface  to  the  New  Testament,  p.  xiv. 


4o8  LITERARY  WORK.  [1856— 

new  interpretations  invented  by  themselves  at  variance 
with  the  general  teaching  of  Scripture  as  received  by 
the  Catholic  Church."  Nextto  the  early  fathers,  Dr. 
Wordsworth  places  the  theological  literature  of  the 
Church  of  England.  Indeed,  he  thinks  in  some  re- 
spects the  divines  of  England  have  enjoyed  advan- 
tages for  the  doctrinal  exposition  of  truth  which  were 
not  possessed  even  by  the  fathers  themselves.  He 
quotes  Bacon  to  show  that  "one  of  the  best  com- 
mentaries on  Scripture  might  be  extracted  from  the 
writings  of  English  divines  :" — 

"  Especially,"  he  adds,  "  is  this  true  of  those  who  were 
imbued  with  a  spirit  of  reverence  for  the  works  of  Christian 
antiquity  and  who  applied  the  teaching  of  the  fathers  to 
the  exposition  of  Holy  Writ,  and  to  the  refutation  of  the 
errors  of  their  own  times.  Who  can  excel  Hooker  and 
Bishop  Andrevves  in  expounding  the  words  of  S.  John  } 
Who  more  successful  than  Bishop  Sanderson  in  applying 
to  cases  of  conscience  the  reasonings  of  S.  Paul  .''  or  than 
Bishop  Pearson  in  bringing  together  a  well-marshalled  array 
of  Scriptural  testimonies  in  defence  of  the  doctrines  of  the 
Christian  Faith  t " 

It  should  next  be  observed  that  Dr.  Wordsworth 
began  his  Commentary  with  the  New  Testament,  not 
with  the  Old.  He  did  this  deliberately,  and  not  with- 
out a  very  intelligible  reason.  In  his  "  Lectures  on 
the  Apocalypse  "  he  explains  the  text,  "  When  those 
living  creatures  give  glory  and  honour  and  thanks  to 
Him  that  sat  on  the  throne,  who  liveth  for  ever  and 
ever,  the  four  and  twenty  elders  fall  down  before  Him 
that  sat  on  the  throne  "  (Rev.  iv.  9,  10),  as  indicating 


— 1873.]  COMMENTARY  ON  THE  BIBLE.  409 

that  the  New  Testament  gives  a  voice  to  the  Old  ; 
the  Old  Testament  finds  its  true  meaning  for  the 
Christian  when  he  has  first  read  the  New  ;  in  the 
light  of  the  latter  he  must  interpret  the  former.  This 
idea  is  amplified  in  two  very  interesting  letters  which 
he  wrote  to  the  editor  of  the  Literary  Clmi'cJiman, 
and  they  bear  so  directly  upon  the  subject  of  which 
we  are  treating  that  we  quote  them  in  full : — 

Sir, — The  fundamental  principle  of  my  Commentary- 
is  that  in  order  to  understand  the  Old  Testament  aright, 
we  must  begin  with  the  Nezv. 

In  deahng  with  sceptics  and  gainsayers,  we  must,  I 
think,  do  as  the  ancient  Church  did  in  dealing  with  Jews 
and  Manichaeans,  and  convince  them,  in  the  first  place, 
of  the  Divine  nature  and  mission  of  Christ. 

I  would  take  as  a  specimen  S.  Justin  Martyr's  argument 
against  Trypho  the  Jew,  and  S.  Augustine's  books  against 
Faustus  the  Manichsan.  We  must,  I  think,  pursue  a 
similar  method  to  theirs  in  dealing  with  sceptics  who 
sneer  at  the  incidents  recorded  of  the  patriarchs  in  the  Old 
Testament,  and  who  treat  these  incidents  with  profane 
contempt  and  jocular  scurrility.  We  shall,  I  am  sure,  fail 
to  convince  them  if  we  argue  with  them  from  the  letter 
alone.  Are  we  not  rather  to  remind  them  that  these 
histories  of  the  Old  Testament  have  been  received  as  true 
by  Christ,  and  as  divinely  inspired,  and  have  also  been 
received  as  facts  by  the  Holy  Apostles  and  by  the  Primi- 
tive Church  Universal,  and  that  we  have  been  taught  by 
Christ  and  His  Apostles  not  only  to  regard  them  as  his- 
torically true,  but  as  containing  divine  mysteries  } 

To  say  that  this  spiritual  interpretation  of  the  Old 
Testament  will  not  of  itself  propria  vigore  convince 
sceptics  and  refute  gainsayers  is  perfectly  true.  But  I  am 
sure  that  we  shall  only  confirm  sceptics  and  create  gain- 


4IO  LITERARY  WORK.  [1856— 

sayers  by  limiting  ourselves  to  the  literal  method  of  inter- 
pretation. And  I  also  believe  that  if  we  follow  the  teach- 
ing of  our  Blessed  Lord,  and  of  His  Holy  Apostles,  and 
the  Apostolic  Fathers,  and  all  the  best  ancient  inter- 
preters, and  begiii  with  inviting  sceptics  and  gainsayers 
to  examine  the  evidence  of  Christianity,  and  if  we  have 
done  our  duty  in  leading  them  to  read  the  Old  Testament 
by  the  light  of  the  Nev\%  then  the  value  of  all  such  spiritual 
interpretations  of  the  Old  Testament  as  are  supplied  to  us 
by  the  Holy  Spirit  in  the  New,  and  by  the  teaching  of 
the  Church  Universal,  will  be  readily  admitted  ;  and  the 
objections  of  sceptics  and  gainsayers  will  have  been  pre- 
vented, and  many  thousands  of  souls,  which  will  otherwise 
perish,  will  be  saved  from  the  perils  of  Unbelief 

I  venture  to  speak  more  strongly  on  this  subject  be- 
cause the  dangers  to  which  the  Faith  of  England  (espe- 
cially in  regard  to  the  Old  Testament)  is  now  exposed 
have  arisen,  as  you  well  know,  from  the  abandonment  of 
the  ancient,  Christian,  Apostolic,  and  patristic  system  of 
interpretation  of  the  Old  Testameiit  for  the  frigid  and 
servile  modern  exegesis  of  the  literalists,  who  see  nothing 
in  the  Old  Testament  but  a  common  history,  and  who 
read  it  (as  S.  Paul  says  the  Jews  do)  "  with  a  veil  on  their 
heart,"  "which  veil  "  (he  adds)  "  is  done  away  in  Christ." 

To  act  in  the  spirit  of  this  Apostolic  declaration  and  to 
raise  the  Biblical  exegesis  of  the  Old  Testament  from  the 
miserably  low  level  to  which  it  has  now  unhappily  fallen 
seems  to  me  to  be  the  noblest  work  of  Biblical  exegesis  in 
these  perilous  times. 

I  am.  Sir,  your  obedient  servant, 

CiiR.  Wordsworth. 

November  26,  1864. 
Dear    Sir, — The  great  problem  of  the  times  is,  I  con- 
ceive—  How  to  deal  with  sceptics  and  gainsayers  in  their 
warfare  against  the  Old  Testament.     For  my  own  part,  I 


— 1872.]  COMMENTARY  OF  THE  BIBLE.  411 

candidly  confess  that  many  of  the  answers  which  have 
been  put  forth  to  their  objections  have  caused  me  more 
regret  than  the  objections  themselves. 

In  many  of  these  answers  it  is  taken  for  granted  that 
the  Old  Testament  is  like  a  culprit  at  the  bar,  and  the 
answerer  comes  forth  to  deprecate  and  arrest  a  sentence  of 
condemnation  by  means  of  arguments  derived  merely 
from  the  bare  letter  of  the  Sacred  Text.  He  does  not 
remind  the  gainsayer  that  the  Old  Testament  stands  in  a 
position  of  dignity  and  majesty  far  above  all  earthly 
tribunals,  that  it  has  received  the  divine  sanction  of  Christ, 
and  that  those  histories  in  it  at  which  the  sceptic  and 
gainsayer  scoff  have  been  received  as  true  by  Him,  and 
that  they  have  also  been  declared  by  Him  and  by  the 
Holy  Spirit  speaking  in  the  New  Testament  to  be  not 
only  historically  true,  but  also  to  be  full  of  spiritual  mean- 
ing and  of  divine  life  and  light. 

But  by  foregoing  such  pleas  as  these,  and  by  placing  his 
client  in  the  humiliating  position  I  have  described,  the 
modern  apologist  of  the  Bible  almost  ensures  a  verdict 
against  it.  If  men  are  to  wait  till  all  the  objections  of 
sceptics  are  answered,  they  will  never  believe  in  the  Old 
Testament. 

How  different  was  the  treatment  which  it  received  from 
the  Holy  Apostles  and  all  the  ancient  fathers  who  ever 
wrote  on  the  Old  Testament.  S.  Paul  does  not  hesitate 
to  say  that  the  letter  of  the  Old  Testament  killetJi  (2  Cor. 
iii.  6) — that  is,  the  letter  when  taken  alone,  without  the 
spirit ;  and  I  need  hardly  remind  you  that  all  the  exposi- 
tions of  the  Old  Testament  which  have  come  down  to  us 
from  the  ancient  Church  are  grounded  on  this  principle. 

Either,  then,  our  Blessed  Lord  and  His  Apostles  and 
the  whole  of  the  ancient  Church  of  God  were  in  darkness 
and  error  in  their  treatment  of  the  Old  Testament  and  in 
their  vindication  of  it  against  the  objections  of  gainsayers 
and  sceptics,  or  else  the  modern  Biblical  exegesis  of  those 


412  LITERARY  WORK.  [1856— 

who  confine  their  arguments  against  gainsayers  and 
sceptics  to  the  letter  of  the  Old  Testament  ought  not  to  be 
hailed  as  a  triumph,  and  ought  not  to  be  eulogized  as  an 
advance  in  the  noblest  of  all  sciences — the  science  of 
Biblical  Criticism  ;  but  it  ought  rather  to  be  deplored  as  a 
lamentable  decline  and  downfall  from  the  true  principles 
of  Scripture  Interpretation  ;  and  ought,  with  the  help  of 
God,  to  be  raised  up  again  and  restored  to  that  standard 
which  was  set  up  by  the  hand  of  Him  who  is  the  Truth. 
I  am,  dear  Sir,  your  obedient  servant, 

Chr.  Wordsworth. 

It  should,  however,  be  carefully  observed  that 
though  Dr.  Wordsworth  lays  so  much  stress  upon  the 
spiritual,  figurative,  typical  meaning  of  the  Old  Tes- 
tament, he  never  spiritualizes  away  the  facts,  which 
are  always  literal  facts  to  him  in  the  first  instance- 
He  invests  them  with  a  deeper  spiritual  meaning, 
that  is  all  ;  but  it  gives  to  him  the  only  true  key  to 
their  significance. 

To  return,  however,  to  the  New  Testament,  which, 
as  we  have  seen,  he,  of  deliberate  purpose,  completed 
before  he  began  to  publish  the  Old.  The  first  thing 
that  strikes  us  is  the  extraordinary  wealth  of  patristic 
learning  with  which  he  fortifies  his  interpretations. 
In  doing  this,  he  was  drawing  from  stores  which  he 
had  been  accumulating  for  many  years.  Even  so 
early  as  1842  the  Master  of  Trinity  (than  whom  no 
man  could  be  a  better  judge)  wrote  to  his  brother 
the  poet : — 

With  respect  to  Christopher,  even  you  perhaps  are  very 
imperfectly  aware  how,  in  his  amazing  activity  and  pcrse- 
vcrancc,hc  has, by  his  leisure  evenings  atllarrowfrom  school 


— 1872.]  COMMENTARY  ON  THE  BIBLE.  413 

business  and  his  vacations,  qualified  himself  for  the  office 
[that  is,  the  Regius  Professorship  of  Divinity  at  Cambridge]. 
Even  in  one  department  only,  I  verily  believe  that  there  is 
perhaps  no  one  English  scholar  now  living  who  has  at  once 
so  extensive  and  so  accurate  a  knowledge  of  the  great  bod\' 
both  of  the  Greek  and  Latin  fathers  as  he  has,  and  I  rejoice 
to  say  all  the  conclusions  he  is  in  the  habit  of  drawing  from 
his  studies  are  in  strict  harmony  with  the  genuine  principles 
of  the  Church  of  England. 

This  letter  is  dated  "  Buxted  Parsonaee,  Uckfield, 
Nov.  7,  1842."  During  the  interval  which  elapsed 
between  the  date  of  this  letter  and  the  publication 
of  the  Greek  Testament,  Dr.  Wordsworth  had  been 
continually  adding  to  his  store  of  patristic  learning, 
so  that  when  he  wrote,  he  was  not  only  thoroughly 
acquainted  with  the  writings,  but  also  thoroughly 
permeated  with  the  spirit  of  the  early  fathers.  Hence 
the  many  analogies  which  he  draws  and  the  figura- 
tive meanings  which  he  finds.  To  some  they  may 
appear  at  times  fanciful  and  far-fetched,  but  those 
who  are  at  all  acquainted  with  the  writings,  for 
instance,  of  Origen,  Ambrose,  Jerome,  and  Augus- 
tine, will  understand  how  a  deep  and  reverential 
student  of  them,  as  Dr.  Wordsworth  was,  could 
hardly  fail  to  catch  their  tone.  It  is  singular  how  this 
feature  in  Dr.  Wordsworth's  Commentary  attracted 
and  impressed  a  man  whose  training  and  ways  of 
life  differed  widely  from  his  own,  the  late  General 
Gordon. 

No  less  striking  is  the  vast  amount  of  knowledge 
which  he  shows  of  the  orreat  divines  of  the  Church  of 


414  LITERARY  WORK.  [1856— 

England.  Those  of  the  seventeenth  century — An- 
dre wes,  Hammond,  Pearson,  Barrow,  Sanderson, 
Mede,  Lightfoot — are  the  most  frequently  re- 
ferred to;  the  eighteenth-century  writers,  with  the 
exception  of  Waterland  and  Bingham,  are  rarely 
mentioned,  and  yet  he  possessed  a-  knowledge 
of  the  eighteenth-century  theology  far  greater  than 
any  but  a  specialist  on  the  subject  possesses.  He 
had  also  made  himself  thoroughly  acquainted  with 
the  voluminous  German  commentaries,  both  of  the 
last  and  of  the  present  century ;  while  with  the 
writers  of  his  own  day  and  their  immediate  prede- 
cessors he  shows  a  minute  acquaintance,  with  which 
perhaps,  he  has  been  scarcely  sufficiently  credited. 
Those  who  hint  that  Dr.  Wordsworth  was  not  in 
touch  with  modern  ideas  can  hardly  have  understood 
how  thoroughly  he  kept  himself  «//_/^zV  with  the  most 
modern  theological  literature.  If  he  preferred  to 
quote  the  older  writers  more  frequently,  it  was  because 
he  thought  "  the  old  wine  was  best,"  not  because  he 
had  not  tasted,  or  rather  quaffed  deeply,  the  new.  In 
fact,  perhaps  the  most  striking  feature  of  this  Com- 
mentary is  the  extraordinary  amount  of  reading, 
both  of  ancient  and  modern  theology,  which  it  indi- 
cates. 

The  next  point  to  be  noticed  is  the  writer's  intense 
belief  in  the  oneness  of  the  Bible.  He  loves  to 
point  out  instances  of  the  fact  that  the  Gospels  are 
not  four  but  really  one ;  that  the  Acts  of  the 
Apostles    are    a   continuation    of  the  Gospel, — the 


—  1872.]  COMMENTARY  ON  THE  BIBLE.  415 

one  telling  of  all  that  Jesus  began  to  do  and  to  teach 
during  His  bodily  sojourn  on  earth,  the  other 
what  He  continues  to  do  and  to  teach  when  His 
bodily  Presence  is  withdrawn,  but  His  spiritual  Pre- 
sence for  ever  abides  with  His  Church  on  earth  ; 
that  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  is  a  complement  to 
the  books  which  enter  so  minutely  into  the  details  of 
the  Jewish  ceremonial  law ;  that  the  Apocalypse  is 
"the  seal  and  colophon  "of  the  whole  Book,  and  "  the 
sequel  and  completion  "  of  the  prophecy  of  Daniel. 
But  it  would  be  endless  to  give  instances  in  detail ; 
the  idea  runs  as  a  thread  through  the  whole  work, 
from  the  first  chapter  of  Genesis  to  the  last  of  the 
Revelation,  and  having  given  the  clue  we  must  leave 
the  reader  to  follow  it  out  for  himself. 

The  Old  Testament  came  out  at  intervals  between 
1864  and  1872.  Dr.  Wordsworth  adopted  the 
authorized  English  version  in  the  text,  with  alter- 
native renderings  in  the  notes.  As  all  his  writings 
show,  he  laid  very  great  stress  upon  a  right  under- 
standing of  the  Old  Testament. 

"  There  is  reason,"  he  writes,  "  to  believe  that  the  Old 
Testament  will  be  the  battle-field  of  Christianity.  If  the 
Church  of  Christ  has  skill  and  courage  to  fight  that  battle 
well,  she  will  win  glorious  victories  there  ;  but  if  she  mis- 
manages the  campaign,  she  will  sustain  an  ignominious  de- 
feat and  imperil  the  foundations  of  belief,  not  only  in  the 
Old  Testament  but  in  the  New,  and,  therefore,  in  Chris- 
tianity itself." 

Nowhere  is  Dr.  Wordsworth  happier  than  when 
commenting  on  some  portions  of  the  Old  Testament. 


4i6  LITERARY  WORK.  [1856— 

We  should  like  to  specify,  not  only  the  Book  of  Job, 
the  Psalms,  but  the  somewhat  less  familiar  books  of 
Ruth,  Esther,  Ecclesiastes,  and,  above  all  perhaps, 
Zechariah  and  Ezekiel.  The  grandeur  of  the  last- 
named  obscure  and  wonderful  book  breaks  upon  one 
like  a  revelation  in  his  pages,  and  no  mere  scholar,  no 
one  whohad  not  something  of  the  fervour  of  a  poet,  and 
the  devout  intuition  of  a  saint,  could,  we  think,  have 
entered  fully  into  that  wondrous  life  and  prophecy, 
with  its  strangely  typical  symbolism,  recalling  Dante, 
alike  in  its  vivid,  homely  reality,  and  its  weird  and 
majestic  sublimity.  In  reading  Ezekiel  under  Dr. 
Wordsworth's  guidance  we  forget  the  nineteenth 
century  and  the  human  commentator,  and  are  swept 
upward  to  the  threshold  of  the  ideal  Temple,  and 
onward  in  the  flight  of  the  mystic  Cherubim. 

It  is  no  doubt  true  that  the  reader  may  occasion- 
ally consult  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln's  Commentary  and 
find  little  or  no  notice  taken  of  an  important  or  diffi- 
cult point.  Some  readers  might  have  been  thankful 
to  Dr.  Wordsworth,  if,  instead  of  giving  them  some- 
thing of  a  catena  representing  the  views  of  various 
authors  on  important  points,  he  had  been  contented 
to  produce  something  more  entirely  his  own,  so  as 
to  leave  a  distincter  effect  upon  the  mind.  It  is  the 
merit  of  the  Introductions  (which  in  many  respects 
are  the  most  valuable  parts  of  the  work,  and  deserve 
to  be  printed  separately),  that  they  do,  to  a  certain 
extent,  accomplish  this.  And  as  he  proceeded  further 
and  further  in  his  work,  he  seems  to  have  felt  more 


— 1872..]  COMMENTARY  ON  THE  BIBLE.  417 

and  more  the  importance  of  grouping  his  ideas,  as 
we  think  will  be  noticed  by  any  one  who  compares  his 
work  on  the  Old  Testament  with  that  on  the  New. 

His  special  merit  as  a  commentator  seems  to  be 
his  wonderful  power  of  bringing  to  a  focus  a  number 
of  ideas  from  all  parts  of  the  Bible ;  he  sees  the 
vast  masses  of  which  that  great  literature  is  com- 
posed in  their  relation  to  one  another ;  he  illustrates 
in  a  way  peculiarly  his  own,  Holy  Scripture  by 
itself ;  he  sees  the  unity  that  runs  through  it  all,  and 
it  is  by  this  constructive  power,  rather  than  by  minute 
analysis  or  textual  criticism  or  apologetic  skill,  that 
he  will  be  found  helpful  alike  to  those  who  believe, 
and  to  those  who  are  still  in  doubt.  Readers  of 
religious  biography  will  often  have  observed  that 
men  and  women  in  difficulties  have  been  won,  not 
by  answers  to  objections,  but  by  the  living  unity  of 
the  Catholic  Church.  It  is  this  living  unity  as  dis- 
played in  Holy  Scripture  that  Dr.  Wordsworth  has 
done  so  much  to  bring  out.  Take,  for  instance, 
his  Commentary  on  the  Levitical  Books  already 
referred  to,  the  inner  meaning  of  the  yearly  festivals, 
the  sacrifices,  the  array  of  the  Temple,  and  the 
attire  of  the  Hisfh  Priest,  and  see  how  the  Mosaic 
Law  is  shown  to  be  no  dead  letter,  but  instinct 
with  life  and  spirit ;  or  take  some  single  word,  let 
us  say,  e.g.,  the  word  "Bethlehem,"  the  word 
"Shechem,"  or  the  word  "  Moriah,"  and  see  how 
he  groups  ideas  around  it.  His  treatment  of  the 
difficult  passage   about    "the  first  resurrection"  in 

E  e 


41 8  LITERARY  WORK.  [1856—72. 

Rev.  XX.  5,  is  a  masterpiece  of  this  kind  of  inter- 
pretation, and  Holy  Scripture  in  his  hands  seems 
to  become  like  a  rich  and  stately  fugue  by  some 
great  contrapuntist,  when  the  ear  catches  with  delight 
a  snatch  of  the  same  exquisite  melody  repeated  first 
by  one  instrument  and  then  by  another  in  new  keys 
and  moods,  and  strange  inversions,  while  the  very 
fact  of  its  endless  and  mystic  variety  seems  to  deepen 
the  listener's  consciousness  that  one  master-mind, 
one  supreme  Creator  originated  and  sustains  it  all. 

The  Commentary  appears  on  the  surface  to  have 
more  of  an  exegetical  than  of  a  devotional  character. 
Explanations  are  given  at  full  length,  and  both  the 
notes  and  the  marginal  references  show  that  he  had 
carefully  studied  the  Hebrew  original ;  while,  on  the 
other  hand  pious  reflections  like  those  of  Scott  and 
Matthew  Henry  are  very  rare.  But  it  is  easy  to  per- 
ceive that  from  first  to  last  he  had  a  practical  end  in 
view,  and  his  references  to  modern  times  ^  show  that 
he  did  not  consider  the  Old  Testament  as  the  literary 
monument  of  a  dead  race  in  a  dead  language,  but  as 
the  utterance  of  a  living  and  life-giving  Spirit  for  all 
time. 

In  the  interval  between  the  completion  of  the  New 
Testament  and  the  commencement  of  the  publication 
of  the  Old,  Dr.  Wordsworth  wrote  the  article  "  Son 
of  God"  in  Smith's  Dictionary  of  the  Bible.  In 
the  same  year  (1862)  he  published  "The  Holy 
Year"  and   it  is  obvious  that  the  character  of  that 

'  E.'j,  in  the  Introduction  to  the  Book  of  Daniel. 


iS62.]  THE  HOLY  YEAR.  419 

work  was  greatly  influenced  by  his  recent  studies. 
The  way  in  which  Holy  Scripture  is  woven  in  and 
symbolically  applied  is  one  of  the  most  marked  cha- 
racteristics of  "  The  Holy  Year,"  As  he  says  himself, 
"  The  materials  for  English  Church  hymns  are  to  be 
found,  first,  in  the  Holy  Scriptures;  secondly,  in  the 
writings  of  Christian  antiquity  ;  thirdly,  in  the  Book 
of  Common  Prayer."  ^  "  The  Holy  Year  "  draws  from 
all  these  three  sources.  Next  to  Holy  Scripture  the 
writer  ranked  Christian  antiquity.  "  The  works  of 
the  early  Christian  fathers  supply  many  thoughts, 
images,  and  expressions ;  and  it  will  be  well  for  a 
hymn-writer  to  have  ascertained  how  the  same 
subject  has  been  treated  in  the  poetry  of  the  Ancient 
Church."  Dr.  Wordsworth  had  evidently  ascer- 
tained it,  and  in  estimating  the  literary  merits  of 
"The  Holy  Year"  it  should  always  be  remembered 
that  the  writer  aimed,  not  so  much  at  writing  what  he 
considered  to  be  the  best  poetry  in  itself,  but  what 
would  be  in  accordance  with  the  tone  and  spirit  of  the 
Primitive  Church.  But  what  may  be  termed  "'  the 
speciality  "  of  "The  Holy  Year"  is  its  faithful  adhe- 
rence, not  only  to  the  general  teaching,  but  also  to  the 
details  of  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer.  The  writer 
brings  out  far  more  fully  than  any  other  Church  hym- 
nologist  with  whom  we  are  acquainted,  this  teaching 
in  detail.  For  example,  all  Church  hymn-books  con- 
tain a  more  or  less  extensive  collection  of  hymns  on 
the  subject  of  the  season  of  Advent.  But  who  except 
^  "  Aliscellanies,"  ii.  247. 
E   e    2 


420  LITERARY  WORK.  [1862. 

Dr.  Wordsworth  has  followed  the  course  of  the  Church 
in  drawing  attention  Sunday  after  Sunday  to  the 
various  advents  of  our  Blessed  Lord — the  Advent  in 
the  Flesh,  the  Advent  in  the  Word,  the  Advent 
through  the  Ministry,  and  the  Advent  to  the  indi- 
vidual Christian  in  his  times  of  trouble  ?  All  Church 
hymn-books  have  their  hymns  for  the  season  of 
Epiphany  ;  but  where,  except  in  "  The  Holy  Year," 
are  the  various  Epiphanies  brought  out  as  they  are 
brought  out  in  the  services  of  the  Church  of  England 
— the  Epiphany  to  the  wise  men  at  Bethlehem,  the 
Epiphany  at  His  Baptism,  the  Epiphany  at  His 
first  Miracle,  the  Epiphany  in  trials  and  troubles, 
and  the  great  Epiphany  at  the  Day  of  Judgment  ? 
All  Church  hymn-books  have  hymns  suited  to  the 
Festival  of  Christmas  and  the  three  succeedinof 
Festivals  ;  but  where,  except  in  "  The  Holy  Year  " 
and  in  the  "  Christian  Year  "  is  the  connection  between 
the  Birthday  of  Christ  and  the  birthdays  into  a  better 
life  of  the  three  types  of  the  different  kinds  of  martyrs, 
— the  martyr  in  will  and  deed,  the  martyr  in  will,  and 
the  martyr  in  deed,  brought  out  distinctly  ?  Other 
instances  might  be  given,  but  the  above  will  suffice 
to  show  what,  in  our  opinion,  is  the  peculiar  excel- 
lence of  "  The  Holy  Year,"  its  illustration  in 
detail  of  all  the  teaching  of  the  Book  of  Common 
Prayer. 

Regarded  simply  as  poetry  the  work  has  no  doubt 
been  surpassed  in  its  own  particular  line.  The  very 
title,  for  instance,  "  The  Holy  Year,"   naturally  sug- 


1 862.]  THE  HOLY  YEAR.  421 

gests  "The  Christian  Year"  of  John  Keble.  And 
it  is  interesting  to  compare  these  two  kindred  works 
by  two  kindred  spirits  who  would  hold  generally  the 
same  views  on  the  sacred  subjects  of  which  they  both 
treated.  Of  course,  as  compositions,  there  is  no  com- 
parison at  all  between  the  two  volumes.  In  beauty 
of  thought  and  language,  and,  with  the  exception  of 
some  occasional  roughnesses,  in  melody  of  rhythm, 
"The  Christian  Year"  is  unique.  It  is  the  pro- 
duction of  a  poet  whose  mind  has  a  strong  theo- 
logical bias;  "The  Holy  Year"  may,  on  the  other 
hand,  be  called  the  production  of  a  theologian 
whose  nature  possessed  many  poetical  elements  and 
sympathies,  but  who  is  at  times  somewhat  deficient 
in  the  "accomplishment  of  verse."  At  the  same 
time,  "The  Holy  Year"  filled  a  place  which  the 
"  Christian  Year  "  could  not  do.  The  language  and 
ideas  of  the  latter  have  now  become  so  engrained  in 
the  minds  of  all  Churchmen  that  they  may  not  find 
it  easy  to  realize  how  difficult  both  appeared  to  a 
former  generation  ;  but  those  whose  memory  can 
carry  them  back  thirty  or  forty  years  will  remember 
how  frequent  were  the  complaints  of  its  obscurity, 
even  in  the  mouths  of  highly-educated  people.  Now 
Dr.  Wordsw^orth  aimed  at  being  "  understanded  of 
all ;"  his  purpose,  as  shown  in  his  Preface,  would  not 
have  been  answered  if  he  had  not  been.  If  the 
"  Christian  Year  "  was  thought  by  some  to  err  on  the 
side  of  obscurity,  the  "  Holy  Year  "  may  be  thought 
by  some  to  err  on  the  side  of  simplicity,  even  to  the 


.;22  LITERARY  WORK.  [1862. 

verge  of  baldness ;  but  this  very  simplicity  confers 
sometimes  a  force  of  its  own.^  The  "  Christian 
Year  "  was  meant  for  private  and  family  reading, 
"The  Holy  Year"  for  the  public  congregation.  That 
the  author  of  the  former  appreciated  the  work  of 
the  latter  will  be  seen  from  the  following  letter : — 

Sea  View,  Ryde,  May  9,  1862. 
Mv  DEAR  Dr.  Wordsworth, — Will  you  accept  my 
very  sincere,  but  too  tardy  thanks  for  the  kind  present 
of  your  collection  of  hymns  ?  It  came  to  me  without 
your  name,  and  I  looked  with  much  interest  at  the 
Preface,  and  saw  it  was  by  no  common  hand  ;  but  having 
no  idea  from  whom  it  came,  put  it  by  for  the  present. 
Now  I  have  to  thank  you  again  for  calling  my  attention 
to  it,  and  enabling  me  to  thank  you  as  the  author,  after 
reading  it,  but  in  too  cursory  a  way,  for,  of  course,  it  is  as 
little  as  any  the  kind  of  book  to  run  over.  To  judge  of  it 
properly,  it  must  take  at  least  a  year  to  read  ;  for  every 
hymn,  of  course,  should  be  read  on  its  own  day — as  a 
flower  to  be  fully  prized  must  be  studied  in  situ.  It  is  not 
for  me  to  praise  or  criticize  ;  but  you  will  allow  me  to 
thank  you,  as  I  do  most  sincerely,  for  the  principles  of 
it  as  set  forth  in  the  Preface — that  the  Hymn-book  should 
be  the  handmaid  of  the  Prayer-book  ;  that  therefore  it 
cannot  well  be  too  doctrinal ;  that  it  should  be  objective 
rather  than  subjective,  on  which  account  the  singular 
number  should  rarely  be  used — never,  perhaps,  except 
where,    as    in  the  Psalms  and  the   Canticles,    the    whole 

'•'  Such  lines  as 

"  O  never,  never,  when  distrest 
To  doubtful  means  resort  ; 
Christ's  bark  wlien  on  the  billow's  crest 
Is  safe  as  in  the  port," 

will  perhaps  serve  to  illustrate  our  meaning. 


1 862.]  THE  HOLY  YEAR.  423 

Church  may  be  spoken  of  as  one  Person.  It  seems  to  me 
that  you  have  not  only  laid  down  these  principles  in  a 
way  which,  by  God's  blessing,  may  do  us  much  good, 
but  have  also  put  forth  sundry  happy  exemplifications  of 
them — e.g.  in  your  distribution  of  Advent  subjects  ;  in 
the  two  hymns  for  the  first  Sunday  in  Lent;  in  hymns  '  24, 
50,  70,  96,  115,  &c.,  &c.  Of  course  in  so  amp'le  a  work, 
so  full  of  thought,  no  two  persons  would  exactly  sym- 
pathize from  beginning  to  end.  But  indeed  I  feel  very 
much  obliged  to  you,  and  so  I  think  will  a  great  many — 
were  it  only  for  your  acceptance  of  the  old  symbolic 
interpretation  to  such  an  extent. 
Pray  believe  me, 

My  dear  Dr.  Wordsworth, 

Very  truly  and  thankfully  yours, 

J,  Keble. 

One  more  point  deserves  notice  in  connection  with 
"  The  Holy  Year,"  viz,  its  happy  use  of  a  somewhat 
uncommon  metre.  Perhaps  the  two  most  popular 
and  successful  hymns  in  the  book  are  that  for  All 
Saints'  Day, — 
Hark  !   the  sound  of  holy  voices  chanting  at  the  crystal  sea ; 

and  that  for  Ascension  Day, — 

See  the  Conqueror  mounts  in  triumph,  Sec. 

That  for  Easter  Day, — 

Hallelujah  !  hallelujah  !  hearts  to  heaven  and  voices  raise 
is  hardly  less  successful,  and  other  good  hymns  in 
the  same  metre  might  be  mentioned.     The  remarks  of 
Dr.  Wordsworth  on  this  metre,  in  which  he  has  been 
so  exceptionally  successful,  are  worth  quoting  : — 

^  In  later  editions  these  numbers  are  26^  52,  73,  99,  123. 


424  LITERARY  WORK.  [1879. 

It  was  an  ancient  rhythmical  principle  that  the  Tetra- 
meter Trochaic  of  fifteen  syllables  should  be  specially  em- 
ployed on  occasions  when  there  is  a  sudden  burst  of  feeling, 
after  a  patient  waiting  or  a  continuous  struggle.  The  metre 
never  finds  its  place  at  the  beginning,  but  is  reserved  for  a 
later  period  in  the  drama,  both  tragic  and  comic,  of  the 
ancient  stage.  The  long  rapid  sweep  of  this  noble  metre 
and  the  jubilant  movement  of  the  verse,  render  it  very  suit- 
able for  use  on  the  great  festivals  of  the  Christian  year,  such 
as  Easter  and  Ascension,  when,  after  a  severe  trial,  or  quiet 
endurance,  the  Church  is  suddenly  cheered  by  a  glorious 
vision,  which  gladdens  her  heart,  and  evokes  a  song  of  rap- 
ture from  her  lips.- 

In  1879  the  bishop  put  forth  his  "Miscellanies, 
Literary  and  Religious,"  in  three  volumes.  He 
employed,  he  tells  us  in  the  Preface,  "the  com- 
parative leisure  of  a  summer  vacation  in  putting 
them  together,  with  the  hope  that,  if  they  were  of 
any  value  and  were  worth  being  preserved,  they 
might  thus  perhaps  acquire  a  permanence,  which  in 
their  separate  form  they  could  hardly  hope  to  obtain." 
If  there  was  really  any  fear  of  their  losing  their  per- 
manence, it  was  certainly  a  happy  thought  of  Dr. 
Wordsworth  to  mass  them  together,  for  there  are 
amonof  them  some  of  the  most  interestincr  of  all  his 
writings.  Though  he  divides  them  into  "  literary 
and  religious,"  they  have  all,  like  almost  everything 
he  wrote,  a  directly  religious  bearing ;  but  the  term 
"miscellanies"  is  certainly  an  appropriate  title,  for 
they  deal  with  a  most  miscellaneous  set  of  subjects.^ 

"  Miscellanies,"  ii.  251. 
3  The   first  volume  is  devoted  to  foreign  topics  : — Pompeian 


1879-j  MISCELLANIES,  LITERARY  AND  RELIGIOUS.  425 


Many  of  the  subjects  have  been  already  touched 
upon  in  this  volume,  but  on  some  of  the  others  a 
few  remarks  seem  requisite.  And  first  of  all  we 
must  draw  attention  to  the  remarkable  Dissertations 
on  the  Inspiration  and  the  Interpretation  of  the 
Bible,  both  on  account  of  their  intrinsic  merit,  and 
also  on  account  of  their  direct  and  important  bearing 
upon  the  Commentary  we  have  just  been  consider- 
ing. Dr.  Wordsworth  had  published  in  1861  five 
Lectures  on  the  Inspiration  of  the  Bible,  and  five  on 

Inscriptions,  Notes  in  Greece,  in  France,  at  Paris,  in  Italy,  at 
Rome ;  the  Greek  Archbishop  of  Syros,  the  Vatican  Council  of 
1869,  the  Congress  of  the  Old  Catholics  at  Cologne.  The 
second  volume  deals  mainly  with  matters  of  faith  and  worship  : — 
The  Inspiration  and  the  Interpretation  of  the  Bible,  the  Book  of 
Common  Prayer,  the  Ascension  Day  and  Rogation  Days,  Special 
Forms  of  Prayer,  Church  Music,  the  Holy  Year,  Religious  Faith 
and  Worship  in  Art,  Christian  Art  in  Cemeteries,  Cremation  and 
Burial.  The  third  volume  has  to  do  with  religious  matters 
generally  : — Religion  and  Science — with  special  reference  to  Sir 
Isaac  Newton,  Religious  Uses  of  Classical  Subjects,  "  Ethica  et 
Spiritualia,"  the  Spread  of  Infidelity  and  the  Need  of  a  Learned 
Clergy,  the  Destiny  of  Mohammedanism  and  the  Decline  of 
Mohammedanism,  Bishop  Sanderson  on  Human  Conscience  and 
Law,  Ecclesiastical  Legislation  and  Ecclesiastical  Jurisdiction, 
Diocesan  Synods  and  Diocesan  Conferences,  Clerical  Non- 
Residence,  Marriage  and  Divorce,  Enforced  Clerical  Celibacy, 
Sisterhoods  and  Vows,  English  Cathedrals,  the  Mission  at  Lin- 
coln, Pastoral  to  the  Wesleyan  Methodists,  the  Burials  Question, 
Labour  and  Capital,  Capital  Punishment,  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land— Past,  Present,  and  Future,  the  Continuity  of  the  Church 
of  England  and  S.  Hugh,  Bishop  of  Lincoln,  Welcome  from  the 
Church  of  England  to  the  Church  of  America,  Letter  to  the 
University  Commissioners  on  the  Proposed  New  Statutes  for 
Brasenose  and  Lincoln  Colleges,  Letter  to  the  Archbishop  of 
Cyprus. 


426  LITERARY  WORK.  [1879. 

the  Interpretation  of  the  Bible;  and  the  subject  is 
continually  touched  upon  in  his  published  sermons. 
Of  course  it  was  one  of  vital  importance  in  his  eyes  ; 
the  inspiration  of  the  Bible  and  the  right  interpreta- 
tion of  the  Bible  lie  at  the  foundation  of  Christianity  ; 
if  they  are  not  firmly  established,  the  whole  super- 
structure   is  In    danger    of    falling.       His    keynote 
to  the  true  theory  both  of  the  inspiration  and  the 
interpretation    of    the    Bible    is    given  in    his    own 
poetical  language,  "  We  must  lift  up  our  eyes  from 
earth  to  heaven,  and  see  the   Bible  in  the  hands  of 
Christ;    as    subscribed    by     His    Sign-manual,   and 
sealed  by  His  Seal,  and  delivered  by  His  authority 
to    the   Apostolic  Church    Universal,   the  divinely- 
appointed  Keeper  and  Interpreter  of  the  Word  of 
God."     This  idea  is  worked  out  with  orreat  aro^umen- 
tative  power,  and  with  a  perfect  wealth  of  illustration. 
"  Novum  Testamentum  in  Vetere  latet;  Vetus  Tes- 
tamentum    in     Novo    patet."     This    saying   of    S. 
Augustine   furnishes  the  best  clue  to  the    bishop's 
Commentary  on  the  Bible  ;  and  the  full  significance 
of  the  two  points   is   nowhere  better  brought  out 
than  in  this  dissertation. 

A  modern  reader  will  perhaps  feel  some  surprise 
that  in  treating  of  a  question  like  Inspiration  the 
teaching  given  is  so  entirely  dcdttctive.  The  author 
scarcely  alludes  to  the  well-known  difficulties  habi- 
tually brought  forward  by  the  sceptic.  Having  once 
established  our  Lord's  historical  position,  and  ad- 
duced   the   testimony    to    His    Divinity    from    the 


\ 


1 879-]  MISCELLANIES,  LITERARY  AND  RELIGIOUS.  427 

Apostolic  and  sub-Apostolic  times,  he  is  content 
to  waive  all  speculative  questions,  and  (as  was  said 
before  of  his  Commentary)  to  construct  where 
others  would  analyse,  and  to  employ  the  trowel 
rather  than  the  sword.  It  is  well  for  the  Church 
and  for  us  all  that  this  side  of  Christian  teaching 
should  not  be  lost  sio-ht  of — as  we  fear  it  too  often 
is — in  merely  defensive  warfare.  And  there  is  a 
sense  of  relief  to  the  mind  weary  of  speculation 
on  topics  which  are  rather  theistic  than  distinctly 
Christian,  in  coming  back  to  the  definite  teaching  of 
an  earlier  generation,  and  listening  to  the  clear  ring 
of  its  utterances  and  the  firm  echo  of  its  footsteps, 
so  free  because  so  sure,  so  sure  because  so  full  of 
faith. 

Another  dissertation,  published  in  the  "Miscel- 
lanies," claims  attention,  not  only  on  account  of  its 
intrinsic  interest  and  originality,  but  also  because  it 
forms  a  link  between  the  Bishop's  classical  and  his 
theoloQ^ical  studies,  It  is  entitled,  "  Religious  Uses 
of  Classical  Subjects,"  and  will  be  found  in  Vol.  II. 
The  Bishop  inserts  at  the  commencement  the  Pre- 
face to  his  edition  of  Theocritus,  in  which  he  vindi- 
cates, in  excellent  Latin,  the  use  of  classical  studies 
to  the  divine,  and  cites,  with  evident  satisfaction, 
names  (chiefly  belonging  to  the  great  men  of  the 
seventeenth  century)  which  were  equally  distin- 
guished in  theology  and  philology.  He  then  treats 
in  detail  of  the  character  of  Horace  as  displayed 
in  his  works,   and  proves  that  he  was  much   more 


428  LITERARY  WORK.  [1872— 

than  a  mere  man  of  the  world, — that  he  had  a 
noble,  lofty,  and  patriotic,  as  well  as  religious  side 
to  his  character,  and  maintains  with  Bentley  that  in 
proportion  as  Horace  advanced  in  years  his  poems 
improved  in  moral  tone  and  elevation  of  sentiment ; 
and  then  he  draws  from  the  whole  subject  the 
practical  lesson  that  we  have  reason  to  be  thankful 
to  Christianity,  and  to  Christianity  alone,  for  that 
higher  system  of  ethics  in  which  we  have  been 
trained.  As  he  had  shown  many  years  previously 
in  his  sermons  to  the  Harrow  boys,  there  is  no 
better  preparation  for  the  study  of  Christian  morality 
than  the  thoughtful  and  wisely  directed  study  of  such 
writers  as  Horace,  Juvenal,  and  Aristophanes. 

Another  portion  of  these  "  Miscellanies  "  whicli 
requires  special  notice  is  the  "  Ethica  et  Spiritualia," 
originally  published  in  a  separate  little  volume  in 
1872.  It  consists  of  about  500  pithy  maxims, 
chietly  drawn  from  Latin  sources,  classical  and 
patristic,  but  interspersed  with  several  Greek  and 
English  ones,  and  a  few  French  and  Italian,  and 
some  of  his  own  composition.  That  he  could 
find  time  and  inclination  for  such  a  task,  in  the 
midst  of  all  his  diocesan  work,  is  another  proof 
of  his  extraordinary  mental  activity.  The  "  Ethica 
ct  Spiritualia "  were,  he  tells  us,  partly  collected, 
partly  composed  for  the  use  of  the  students  of 
the  Theological  School  at  Lincoln.  He  published 
the  English  version,  with  several  additions,  in  1883, 
under  the  title   of   "Guides   and   Goads."     Another 


— 1877.J  THEOCRITUS.  429 

paper,  "  Notes  at  Amiens"  (Misc.  I.,  131,  &c.),  ex- 
poses with  much  learning  and  ingenuity  the  absurd 
conjectures  and  pretensions  which  had  grouped 
themselves  around  the  name  of  "  Saint  Theudosia."  "^ 
It  has  been  thouo-ht  well  to  treat  of  the  "  Mis- 
cellanies  "  immediately  after  the  Commentary,  be- 
cause, as  we  have  seen,  one  of  the  most  valuable 
pieces  in  those  "  Miscellanies "  throws  the  best 
light  upon  Bishop  Wordsworth's  views  on  the  func- 
tions of  a  commentator.  But  in  point  of  date,  the 
"  Miscellanies  "  were  preceded  by  two  works  which 
should  not  pass  unnoticed.  In  1877  he  reprinted  an 
English  translation  of  Bishop  Sanderson's  Lectures 
on  Conscience  and  Human  Law,  and  in  the  same 
year  he  also  put  forth  a  new  and  fuller  edition  of  his 
Theocritus,  which  had  been  originally  published 
in  1844.  The  history  of  this  work  shows  what 
Dr.  Wordsworth  might  have  done  had  he  devoted 
himself  (as  some  bishops  in  earlier  days  were  wont 
to  do)  to  editing  and  annotating  upon  classical 
authors.  In  the  interval  between  1844  and  1877, 
several  different  editions  of  Theocritus  had  ap- 
peared, especially  in  Germany,  and  Dr.  Wordsworth 
discovered,  "  not  without  some  pleasant  emotion  of 

^  It  is  perhaps  to  be  regretted  that  there  is  no  index  to  the 
"Miscellanies  ;"  the  tabular  view  of  contents  is  hardly  a  sufficient 
substitute  for  one.  There  is  abundant  material  for  a  fourth 
volume  to  complete  the  collection.  And  perhaps  it  would  be 
well  in  any  future  edition  that  portions  (such  as  ^'  The  Holy 
Year  "),  which  tend  to  swell  the  work  somewhat  unduly,  should 
be  omitted,  and  left  to  stand  upon  their  own  substantial  merits. 


430  LITERARY  WORK.  [1877. 

mind,"  that  ''  the  latest  and  most  learned  "  editor  had 
incorporated  some  of  his  own  notes.  This  en- 
couraged him  to  issue  another  and  improved  edition 
of  his  own.  One  may  almost  call  him  an  enthusiast 
on  the  subject  of  Theocritus.  The  fresh,  spark- 
ling verses  and  delicate  humour  of  the  pastoral  poet 
appealed  to  his  inborn  love  of  nature.  And  what 
w^as  still  more  attractive  to  him,  Theocritus  appeared 
to  be  not  only  the  poet  of  nature,  but  also  the  poet 
of  natural  piety. 

"  No  one,"  he  writes,  while  indignantly  deploring  the 
misdirected  zeal  of  the  Christian  Emperor  Theodosius 
in  sweeping  away  the  treasures  of  heathen  literature,  "  no 
one  can  have  accompanied  in  his  mind  the  shepherds  of 
Theocritus  to  their  rural  harvest-home  at  the  village  feast 
of  Phrasidamus,  and  have  reclined  with  them  beneath  the 
shade  of  elms  and  poplars  near  the  fountain  of  the  Nymphs, 
and  amid  the  murmur  of  bees  and  the  plaintive  note  of  the 
stockdoves,  and  the  rich  autumnal  produce  of  apples,  pears, 
and  plums,  strewn  at  their  feet ;  and  have  listened  to  their 
simple  strains  of  pious  thankfulness  to  Demeter,  holding 
the  ripe  stalks  and  poppies  in  her  hand,  without  some  feel- 
ing of  regret  that  their  piety,  which  might  well  stimulate 
some  who  enjoy  the  blessings  of  a  purer  faith,  was  often 
exposed  to  fanatical  insult  and  outrage,  without  perhaps 
any  substitute  for  it."' 

The  following  letter,  from  the  present  Archbishop 
of  Canterbury,  on  the  subject  of  his  Theocritus  will 

be  read  with  interest : — 

Rose  Castle^  Carlisle. 
I  was  once  sitting  with  the  late  Master  of  Trinity  (Dr. 

■'  "  Cluirch  History,"  vol.  iii.  pp.  11,  12. 


iS77-]  THEOCRITUS. 


Thompson)  when  he  was  speaking  with  great  admiration  of 
the  Bishop's  genius  for  scholarship.  "  A  pity,"  he  said,  "  that 
he  took  to  Divinity — he  would  have  been  the  first  scholar  in 
Europe.  Even  now  he  is  the  only  one  almost  of  living 
men  whom  the  Germans  appreciate."  He  then  went  on  to 
say  that  he  had  been  re-reading  Theocritus  just  lately  with 
the  utmost  care,  and  "  possessed  myself  of  all  the  latest 
German  editions  up  to  this  moment,  and  read  them.  Wh}- ! 
they  are  all  made  out  of  or  based  on  Wordsworth's  notes 
and  text,  which  he  published  when  he  was  quite  young  : 
it  was  a  wonderful  thing."  When  I  next  saw  the  Bishop, 
I  told  him  that  the  Master  had  said  he  had  been  re-reading 
his  edition  of  Theocritus  with  great  pleasure  and  found  the 
Germans  so  largely  indebted  to  it,  and  that  they  had  not 
gone  beyond  it.  The  Bishop  smiled  with  a  look  of  great 
amusement  and,  with  his  eyes  brightening,  he  said,  "  Did 
he  say  so  ?  Did  he  really  tell  you  that  about  the  later 
editions  ?  I  know  a  good  deal  more  about  Theocritus  now 
than  I  did  then," — and  with  a  smile  he  passed  off  to  some 
other  subject.  The  very  next  summer  holidays  which  he 
had,  he  looked  up  his  accumulating  notes,  and  brought  out 
the  beautiful  new  edition,  which  really  was  a  great  advance 
even  on  his  own  old  one,  with  its  exquisitely  written 
Latin  preface.  It  was  the  work,  I  believe,  of  a  very  iQ\^ 
weeks,  and  by  no  means  the  only  w^ork. 

It  is  clear  that  the  preparation  of  his  admirable 
editions  of  Theocritus  was  no  weary  task  to  him, 
but  a  real  labour  of  love,  as  delightful  at  seventy  as 
it  had  been  at  thirty-seven. 

We  next  come  to  what  is  regarded  by  some  com- 
petent judges  as  the  crowning  work  of  Dr.  Words- 
worth's literary  career,*^  his  "  Church  History."    Some 

^  "  His  literary  work,  crowned,  as  we  think,  by  his  '  Church 
History.'" — Chinh  Quarterly  Revietv,  April,  1885. 


432  LITERARY  WORK.  [1881— 

will  not  quite  agree  with  this  estimate,  but  all  must 
admit  that,  considering  Dr.  Wordsworth  was  no  less 
than  seventy-three  years  of  age  when  he  published 
the  first  volume,  and  seventy-five  when  he  published 
the  fourth  and  last ;  considering  also  that  the  work 
was  written  chiefly  during  his  annual  summer  holi- 
days,^ when  he  could  have  had  but  few  books  of 
reference  to  verify  his  statements, — the  "  Church 
History"  was  a  marvellous  tour  de  force.  The 
marvel  to  a  great  extent  ceases  when  we  remember 
that,  as  his  sources  of  information  were  of  course 
mainly  the  early  fathers,  he  was  really  giving  to  the 
world  the  results  of  the  study  of  a  lifetime.  We 
have  seen  how,  nearly  forty  years  before,  his  father 
and  Dr.  Routh  had  spoken  of  his  theological 
scholarship.  Since  those  early  times  he  had  been 
continually  adding  to  his  vast  store  of  patristic 
learning.  Moreover,  this  work  of  his  old  age  had 
evidently  been  projected  in  earlier  years,  for  he 
tells  us  in  the  Preface  to  the  first  volume,  ''  It  has 
loner  been  the  author's  wish  to  ofier  to  the  risinof 
generation  a  view  of  the  history,  doctrine,  and 
discipline  of  the  Christian  Church  from  the  Day  of 
Pentecost  to  the  Council  of  Nicaea."  It  would 
seem  from  this  that   his  original  design  was  com- 

'  Much  of  it  appears  to  have  been  written  at  Harewood,  the 
home  of  his  daughter  Priscilla,  whither,  especially  in  his  later 
years,  he  loved  to  retire.  He  frecpiently  refers  in  his  letters  to 
the  kindness  of  his  daughter  and  her  husband  (P.  A.  Steedman, 
Esq.),  both  in  other  respects  and  also  in  copying  out  his  MS.  of 
the  "Church  History." 


—1883.]  CHURCH  HISTORY.  433 

pleted  in  the  first  volume  ;  but  the  work  grew  upon 
his  hands,  and  the  History  was  carried  on  in  -three 
subsequent  volumes  to  the  year  451  a.d. 

It  has  sometimes  been  said  that  this  work  bears  the 
traces  of  havincr  been  written  in  too  sfreat  haste  ;  that 
it  would  have  been  all  the  better  fora  little  compression 
and  condensation ;  that  both  style  and  substance  need 
a  little  more  of  the  "  limce  labor."  If  this  be  the  case 
the  reason  is  assuredly  not  because  the  author  under- 
rated either  the  importance  or  the  difficulty  of  his 
subject.  On  the  contrary,  he  speaks  of  both  in 
terms  which  would  certainly  appear  exaggerated  to 
any  who  took  a  less  lofty  view  of  what  the  Christian 
Church  was,  and  is.  "To  treat  Church  History 
aright,  especially  the  Church  History  of  the  ante- 
Nicene  age,  is  a  task  which  might  seem  fit  to  employ 
the  pen  of  Inspiration"  (Preface  to  Vol.  I.).  This 
seems  strong  language,  but  not  too  strong,  when  we 
remember  the  exalted  estimate  which  Dr.  Words- 
worth took  of  the  nature  and  functions  of  the  Church. 
In  his  very  first  page  he  strikes  the  keynote  of  all 
his  future  history  : — 

There  is  one  Church  of  God  from  the  beginning  of  the 
world  to  the  end.  In  Paradise,  after  the  Fall,  under  the 
Patriarchs,  under  the  Levitical  Law,  after  the  Incarnation  of 
the  Son  of  God,  even  to  His  second  Advent,  the  Church 
has  been,  is,  and  ever  will  be,  one.  Holy  men  before  His 
coming  believed  in  Christ  to  come ;  holy  men  after  His 
coming  believed  in  Him  having  come.  The  times  of  the 
Church  have  changed  ;  her  Faith  is  always  the  same.  At 
the  Incarnation  of  the   Son  of  God,  the  Church  acquired 

F  f 


434  LITERARY  WORK.  [1883— 

universality  in  time  and  space,  and  became  partaker  of  the 
Divine  nature  by  her  mystical  union  with  Him  as  His  Bride, 
and  as  Queen  at  His  right  hand,  and  was  admitted  to  an 
inheritance  and  partnership  in  that  Kingdom  which  will 
never  be  destroyed. 

And  so  he  goes  on,  without  the  faintest  shadow 
of  a  doubt  that  the  history  of  the  Church  was  the 
History  of  the  Saviour's  work  on  Y.-3X\hfroiii  Heaven. 
It  was  the  history  of  "the  progress  of  a  great 
struggle  between  the  two  antagonistic  powers  of 
Good  and  Evil,  Light  and  Darkness,  the  city  of 
God  and  the  city  of  the  World."  It  was  the  his- 
tory of  "  the  establishment  and  extension  and  final 
triumph  of  the  Fifth  Great  Monarchy,  the  only 
indestructible  and  universal  Monarchy,  the  King- 
dom of  Christ,''  for  which  the  four  great  empires  of 
the  world  had  been  unconsciously  preparing  the 
way.  It  was  the  history  of  that  which  ''  is  likened 
in  the  Canticles  to  a  '  Lily  among  thorns,'  by  reason 
of  the  calm,  silver  light  with  which  she  shines  in 
peace,  in  the  dark  shade,  and  in  the  midst  of  the 
briars  and  brambles  of  the  manifold  contradictions 
of  earthly  strifes."  "  He  proposed  to  himself  an  en- 
deavour to  realize  the  leading  idea  which  guided 
the  ancient  Church  historians,  and  which  animated 
S.  Augustine  in  his  work  '  On  the  City  of  God,'  and 
which  is  unfolded  in  the  Revelation  of  S.  John,  in 
the  representation  of  the  destinies  of  the  Church 
from  the  first  Advent  of  Christ  to  the  end  of  the 
world." 

It  was  a  magnificent  conception  ;  and  if  the  execu- 


— i88i.]  CHURCH  HISTORY.      '  435 

tion  was  not  always  equal  to  the  conception,  the  cause 
lay  to  a  very  great  extent  in  what  really  constituted 
one  of  the  chief  attractions  of  Dr.  Wordsworth's 
character.  He  wrote  so  much  out  of  the  fullness  of 
his  soul  and  out  of  the  fullness  of  his  mind  that  he 
could  not  stay  to  polish,  or  elaborate,  or  condense. 
The  very  last  reproach  which  can  be  cast  upon  his 
"Church  History"  is  that  it  is  "apiece  of  book- 
making."  He  did  not  "get  up  "his  subject  in  order 
that  he  might  write  about  it,  but  he  wrote  about  it 
because  he  had  thoroughly  mastered  the  subject. 
He  did  not  write — he  never  wrote — for  effect,  but 
because  he  had  something  to  say.  The  sketches 
of  S.  Ambrose,  S.  Jerome,  S.  Augustine,  S.  Atha- 
nasius,  Origen,  and  Tertullian,  perhaps  the  best  parts 
of  the  book,  are  evidently  sketches  of  men  whom 
one  can  hardly  help  calling  old  familiar  friends  of 
Dr.  Wordsworth.  He  shows  in  a  way  that  seems 
quite  undesigned  and  that  is  indescribable,  that 
he  knew  all  about  them  long  before  he  essayed  to 
depict  them.  An  instance  will  best  illustrate  our 
meaning.  The  memorable  incident  of  the  Council  of 
Nicaea  is  described  by  Dr.  Wordsworth,  by  Gibbon, 
the  historian,  and  by  Dean  Stanley.  The  two  latter, 
with  a  consummate  skill  in  word-painting,  present 
the  whole  scene  in  the  most  striking  light  to  the 
reader's  eye.  From  a  purely  literary  and  artistic 
point  of  view  their  portraits  are  unquestionably  more 
effective  than  Dr.  Wordsworth's.  But  dramatic 
effect  was  the  very  last  thing  the  Bishop  aimed  at. 

F  f  2 


436  LITERARY  WORK.  [1881— 

His  object  was  to  represent  the  contest  between 
truth  and  error,  according  to  what,  from  the  bottom 
of  his  heart,  he  beheved  to  be  truth  and  error- 
Hi  ence  by  far  the  most  effective  parts  of  his  narrative 
are,  not  the  account  of  the  imposing  array  assembled, 
but  the  description  of  the  insidious  character  of  that 
Arianism  which  the  Council  condemned,  and  the 
portrait  of  that  intrepid  spiritual  champion  who  was 
the  very  life  and  soul  of  the  whole  Council.  The 
whole  subject  is  treated  with  direct  reference  to  its 
application  to  modern  times. 

But  there  was  a  man  in  Alexandria  at  that  time  who  had 
been  nurtured  by  Alexander  as  a  spiritual  son  in  the  Faith, 
and  who  held  a  position  in  the  Church  immediately  under 
him  as  his  archdeacon,  and  who  was  endowed  with  singular 
gifts  of  holiness  and  wisdom,  and  with  profound  learning, 
drawn  from  Holy  Scripture  and  from  Catholic  tradition,  and 
also  from  secular  philosophy  ;  a  man  of  masculine  intellec- 
tual vigour,  clearness  of  perception  and  logical  acumen, 
and  also  gifted  by  the  Holy  Spirit  with  the  moral  qualities 
of  indomitable  perseverance,  patience,  and  courage,  in  de- 
fending the  Faith,  and  who  united  magnetic  attractiveness 
with  adamantine  firmness.  This  was  Athanasius,  who  was 
raised  up  at  that  critical  time,  and  continued,  through  good 
report  and  evil  report,  to  strive  earnestly  for  the  Faith,  which 
he  was  in  God's  hands  a  chief  instrument  in  establishing  at 
the  Council  of  Nicaea,  and  in  maintaining  for  nearly  half 
a  century  after  it.     (I.  424,  &c.) 

One  reads  this  last  paragraph  with  special  interest 
because  Bishop  Wordsworth  has  himself  been  termed 
the  Athanasius  of  the  nineteenth  century  ;  and  the 
comparison  is  at  least  so  far  correct,  that  if  all  the 


—  1883.]  CHURCH  HISTORY.  437 

world  had  been  against  him,  he  would,  as  his  whole 
life  shows,  have  been  a  second  "  Athanasius  contra 
mundum." 

Dr.  Wordsworth's  "  Church  History  "  was  written 
for  a  practical  purpose.  Hence  the  constant  analo- 
gies he  draws  between  the  events  he  is  recording 
and  the  events  of  later  days.  The  Nicene  Council 
might  be  regarded  as  a  witness  against  the  novelties 
of  the  Papacy  on  the  one  side,  and  of  Presby- 
terianism,  Independency,  Methodism,  and  all  other 
novel  and  un-Catholic  forms  of  Church  government 
on  the  other.  It  also  "  disproved  another  form  of 
Church  polity  commonly  called  Erastianismr  (I. 
462.) 

Marcion,  who  '^  was  not  so  much  a  Gnostic  as 
a  Rationalist''  was  "the  precursor  of  that  so-called 
'  higher  criticism  '  which,  by  the  action  of  '  its  inner 
consciousness,'  subordinates  Revelation  to  its  own 
subjective  notions,  and  rejects  all  those  portions  of 
the  Holy  Scripture  which  it  cannot  reconcile  with  the 
results  of  its  own  investigations  "  (I.  199).  Valen- 
tinianism  "did  not,  like  some  Gnostic  systems,  reject 
the  Holy  Scriptures  ;  on  the  contrary,  it  patronized 
them,  and  it  favoured  its  disciples  with  more  en- 
lightened and  transcendental  interpretations  of  them, 
like  the  Swedenborgianism  of  later  days."     "  The 

«  Soon  after  Dr.  Wordsworth's  death  it  was  well  pointed  out 
by  a  writer  in  the  Guardian  that  he  had  unconsciously  depicted 
himself  in  his  portrait  of  the  Christian  Gnostic.  (See  "  Church 
History,"  I.  261,  265.) 


438  LITERARY  WORK.  [1881— 

reader  will  recognize  in  it  many  elements  which 
made  themselves  manifest  in  the  theology  of  sectaries 
on  the  Continent  and  in  England  in  the  sixteenth  and 
seventeenth  centuries,  some  of  which  are  still  active  ; 
and  also  in  some  speculations  which  are  now  put 
forth  in  some  modern  systems  of  metaphysics  "  (I. 
210,  211).  The  fact  "that  a  person  of  Tertullian's 
masculine  intellect  and  definite  Catholic  teaching 
should  have  been  fascinated  and  ensnared  by  the 
extravagant  reveries  and  wild  rhapsodies  of  Montanus 
and  his  female  associates,"  reminds  the  Bishop  of 
"  another  example  of  such  a  psychological  pheno- 
menon in  one  of  our  own  most  vigorous  logicians 
and  acute  controversialists,  as  well  as  most  spiritual 
theologians,  who  did  not  escape  the  fanatical  spells 
of  Jacob  Boehmen — William  Law  "  (I.  236).  The 
"  liberal  culture  and  general  unprofessional  training  " 
which  S.  Ambrose  had  received,  and  without  which 
"  he  would  not  have  been  an  instrument  of  so  much 
good  as  he  was,  in  acting,  writing,  and  speaking,  to 
the  Catholic  Church,"  arc  compared  with  that  which 
"  has  made  our  own  public  schools  and  colleges  such 
excellent  seminaries  for  the  ministers  of  the  English 
Church"  III.  72).  S.  Augustine  is  enlisted  to 
bear  his  testimony  to  the  desirableness  of  "  the  sub- 
division of  dioceses  and  the  multiplication  of  bishops 
when  the:  spiritual  needs  of  a  population  require  it  " 
(IV.  65),  to  the  Bishop's  own  view  of  the  question  of 
^'temperance  and  tolal abstinence''^  (71)  and  of  "  intro- 
ducing the  unfcrmented  '  juice  of  the  grape  '  instead 


•1883.]  CHURCH  HISTORY.  439 


of  wine  in  the  Holy  Eucharist"  (72),  and  of  cremation 
in  Heu  of  Christian  burial  (96). 

It  must  not  be  thouo-ht  that  because  Dr.  Words- 
worth  was  so  uncompromisingly  orthodox  he  was 
unable  to  see  the  good  points  of  those  who  diverged 
from  the  paths  of  orthodoxy.  Two  of  the  most 
striking  and  attractive  of  his  many  striking  and  attrac- 
tive sketches  of  the  Christian  Fathers  are  those  of 
Origen  and  Tertullian,  both  of  whom  held  on  some 
points  heretical  opinions.  Origen,  "  by  his  wonderful 
many-sidedness  and  versatility,  came  into  contact 
and  sympathetic  communion  with  minds  of  all  classes, 
temperaments,  and  antecedents,  and  thus  he  won 
many  to  Christianity."  Tertullian  became  a  Montanist, 
but  "  there  were  some  important  truths  underlying 
the  errors  of  Montanism,"  on  which  the  Bishop 
dwells  with  real  appreciation  (I.  236).  "Both  these 
great  men  have  just  claims  to  be  admired  and 
imitated  for  what  was  noble  and  good  in  them  ;  and 
let  both  be  judged  charitably  for  their  failings.  The 
benefits  conferred,  by  the  goodness  of  God,  on  the 
Church  by  the  instrumentality  of  both  were  per- 
manent ;  and  even  their  infirmities,  though  occasions 
of  temporary  mischief,  have  been  made  conducive  to 
her  welfare"  (I.  280). 

Not  less  ready  is  Dr.  Wordsworth  to  recognize 
the  good  side  of  heathenism.  His  classical  enthu- 
siasm made  this  a  favourite  theory  with  him,  as  we 
have  seen  in  his  essay  on  "  The  Religious  Use  of 
Classical  Studies."     And  so  he  points  out  that  there 


440  LITERARY  WORK.  [1881— 

was  "  some  truth  in  the  Pao^an  alleo-ation  that  the  fall 
of  Rome  was  to  be  imputed  to  the  neglect  of  the 
heathen  religion  and  worship.  Every  religion  has 
some  elements  of  truth  in  it ;  and  Roman  heathenism 
had  much  in  it  that  was  true,  noble,  and  beautiful  ; 
and  by  means  of  these  elements  of  truth  Rome 
flourished.  It  flourished  by  belief  in  the  existence 
of  divine  beings  who  governed  the  world.  It 
flourished  also  by  means  of  faith  in  a  future  State  of 
Rewards  for  justice,  honesty,  temperance,  and  pa- 
triotism ;  and  of  eternal  Punishments  for  injustice, 
fraud,  licentiousness,  and  treachery.  It  prospered 
by  means  of  national  belief  in  the  omnipresence 
and  omniscience  of  its  deities,  which  guarded  the 
sanctity  of  oaths  and  secured  social  confidence  " 
(III.  260).  He  shows  with  evident  delight  that 
"  the  devout  heathen  did  not  begin  his  daily  meals 
without  prayer  to  the  Divine  Being;"  and  that  "the 
duty  of  daily  morning  and  evening  prayer  had  been 
inculcated   by   Hesiod  "   (III.    11).^     "Christianity," 

^  A  letter,  kindly  sent  to  us  by  Canon  Crowfoot,  shows  that 
the  Bishop  laid  stress  upon  this  point  : — 

[OxN  "Saying  Grace."] 

Riseholiiie,  Lincoln,  November  8,  1879. 
My  dear  Canon  Crowfoot, — As  I  am  leaving  home  early 
on  Monday,  I  shall  hardly  have  the  pleasure  of  receiving  the 
letter  you  promised  to  send  ;  and  so,  without  waiting  for  it,  1 
write  to  say  that  I  suppose  the  proverb  to  which  the  allusion 
was  made,  is  that  which  is  mentioned  by  Plato  in  his  Euthyphro 
(c.  2)  and  Cratylus  (p.  491,  (7),  d^'  'Etrrtas  apx'^aOai;  compare 
Momer's  hymn  to  Vesta  and  Mercury  (v.  4), — 


J 


—1883.]  CHURCH  HISTORY.  441 

he  says,  "  did  not  appear  upon  earth  in  the  nobler 
days  of  Greek  heroism,  which  displayed  itself  at 
Marathon,  Salamis,  and  Plataese  ;  nor  in  the  hardier 
times    of    the     Roman    Republic,    prolific    in    such 

ov  yap  arep  (tov 
EtXaTTtP'ai  OvrjToirnv,  Iv   ov  TrpujTY]  Trv/xaTT]  re 
'EaTLTj  ap-^6jX(.vo<;  CTTreVSei  p.eXvrjSea  oXvov. 

It  is  remarked  by  Athen^eus  (iv.  27)  that  none  but  Epi- 
cureans and  Atheists  began  their  meals  without  some  act  of 
rehgion.  The  words  of  Homer  are  very  expressive,  as  witnesses 
of  heroic  piety  : — 

ovSe  Tts  (.tXtj 
Ylplv  TTteetv,  irplv   Xa.xpaL  virepixevei  Kpoviwvi. 

Iliad,  vii.  480. 

You  may  remember  also  the  beautiful  scene  (where  Athena  and 
Telemachus  are  entertained  by  Nestor  at  Pylos);,  so  descriptive  of 
primitive  religion,  in  the  Odyssey,  iii.  35-50 ;  and  the  delightful 
lines  in  Horace,  4  Carm.  v.  28  : — 

Condit  quisque  diem  coUibus  in  suis, 
Et  vitem  viduas  ducit  ad  arbores  ; 
Hinc  ad  vina  redit  Isetus  et  alteris 

Te  mensis  adhibet  Deum  : 
Te  multa  prece^  te  prosequ-'tur  mero 
Defuso  pateris,  et  Laribus  tuum 
Miscet  numen,  uti  Greecia  Castoris 
Et  magni  memor  Herculis. 
Compare    the  remarks  of   Mitscherlich    and    Orelli   on   this 
passage,  and  Virgil,  JEn.  v.  62  : — 

adhibete  Penates 
Et  patrios  epulis,  et  quos  colit  hospes  Acestes. 
It  is  to  be  feared  that  the  custom  of  saying  Grace  before  meat 
is  dying  out  among  us  at  the  tables  of  fashionable  society  in 
London  and  elsewhere;  and  that  in  this  and  in  other  respects  the 
old  traditions  will  rise  up  in  judgment  against  us  at  the  Great 
Day. 

I  am  your  affectionate 

C.  Lincoln. 


442  LITERARY  WORK.  [1883— 


patriotic  self-sacrifice  as  that  of  the  Decii  ;  nor  in  the 
glorious  epoch  of  the  Scipios  "  (I.  324).  One  of  the 
most  interesting  parts  of  the  History  is  the  descrip- 
tion of  Symmachus,  the  last  of  the  great  heathen 
orators  (III.  23),  pleading  for  the  Altar  of  Victory. 

Perhaps  he  insisted  all  the  more  strongly  upon 
these  points  because  he  wrote  his  "Church  History  ' 
"  mainly  for  the  rising  generation,  especially  young 
students  of  theology ;"  and,  as  we  have  already 
seen,  he  desired  to  commend  to  such  students  a 
general,  and  especially  a  classical  training  as  essen- 
tial to  those  who  would  make  themselves  good 
divines  and  good  clergymen. 

In  the  same  year  in  which  the  last  two  volumes  of 
the  "  Church  History  "  were  published  (1883)  there 
also  appeared  a  little  volume  which  showed  another 
side  of  the  Bishop's  mind.  This  is  entitled  "  Con- 
jectural Emendations  of  Passages  in  Ancient  Au- 
thors, with  other  Papers."  The  emendations  sug- 
gested are  very  ingenious,  and  show  the  greatest 
critical  acumen  ;  and  not  the  least  interesting  part  of 
the  work  is  the  opening  paragraph,  which  gives  us  a 
glimpse  of  the  happy  relations  which  always  subsisted 
between  the  Bishop  and  every  member  of  his  family. 
The  essay  is  in  the  form  of  a  letter  addressed  to  his 
eldest  son,  the  present  Bishop  of  Salisbury. 

The  "  other  papers  "  in  this  volume  are  the  two 
extremely  interesting  ones,  "Where  was  Dodona?" 
and  "  Pompeian  Inscriptions,''  which  have  been 
already  noticed;    and  a    paper   ''On   the  Study  of 


— 1841.]  HARROW  SERMONS.  443 

Archaeology,"  an  inaugural  address  at  the  annual 
meeting  of  the  Royal  Archaeological  Institute,  held 
at  Lincoln  on  the  27th  of  July,  1880,  in  which  he 
sets  forth  in  very  poetical  and  eloquent  language 
the  religious  use  of  archaeology. 

There  yet  remains  a  very  important  branch  of 
Dr.  Wordsworth's  literary  work  to  be  noticed.  His 
sermons,  far  more  than  most  sermons,  fall  under  this 
head,  for  the  following  reason.  He  rarely  preached 
a  sermon  which  had  not  some  direct  reference  to 
matters  of  immediate  interest,  either  to  the  public 
generally  or  to  the  special  audience  which  he  was 
addressing.  Hence,  while  they  have  all  the  vigour 
and  eloquence  of  spoken  addresses,  and  are  as  far 
removed  as  possible  from  the  "dry  essay"  style  of 
sermons,  they  have  yet  all  the  literary  interest  of 
the  pamphlet  written  on  the  burning  question  of  the 
day. 

The  first,  in  point  of  date,  are  the  Harrow  Ser- 
mons, which  are  interesting,  among  other  reasons, 
as  illustrative  of  the  very  definite  conception  which 
Dr.  Wordsworth  had  formed  of  the  function  of  the 
public  school.  That  function  was  mainly  to  build  up 
a  society  of  consistent  young  Churchmen  who  should 
thoroughly  understand  the  system  and  doctrines  of 
the  Church  of  their  baptism.  To  this  object  their 
classical  and  mathematical  attainments  were  to  be 
subservient : — 

"The  knowledge  which  you  acquire  here  of  the  Greek  and 
Latin  languages  gives  you  immediate  access  to  the  original 


444  LITERARY  WORK.  [1841  — 

of  the  most  precious  Book  in  the  world,  and  to  numerous 
sources,  otherwise  not  open  to  you,  whence  you  may  derive 
indescribable  advantage  and  delight,  both  spiritual  and  in- 
tellectual. Your  mathematical  studies  carefully  pursued 
will  fortify  your  reasoning  faculties,  will  enable  you  to 
understand  and  value  the  strength  of  evidence  in  support  of 
our  most  holy  Faith,  and  to  maintain  its  truth  with  wisdom 
and  power,  and  to  stand  proof  against  all  the  sophistical 
subtleties  of  scepticism.  My  brethren,  this  career  of  a 
Christian  gentleman  and  scholar  devoting  his  influence,  his 
abilities,  and  his  learning  to  the  promotion  of  the  cause  of 
God  and  of  His  Church  in  God^s  appointed  way,  is  indeed 
a  noble  one.  If  this  be  your  course,  everything  that  you 
now  possess  will  be  increased  a  hundredfold  in  value.  Here 
you  have  the  best  incitements  to  industry,  and  to  the  im- 
provement of  all  your  talents.  If  employed  in  this  service, 
your  abilities,  your  means,  your  station  in  society,  will  be 
so  many  steps  in  a  glorious  ladder  which  will  lead  you  from 
earth  to  heaven  and  place  you  before  the  throne  of  God."  ' 
"  The  Church  is  the  School  of  schools  ;  thither  we  must 
resort  for  our  principles  of  discipline.  In  this  manner  much, 
by  God's  blessing,  may  be  effected  by  Christian  schools, 
both  for  her  and  for  themselves.  By  school  discipline  upon 
Church  principles  we  may  hope  to  promote,  according  to  our 
measure,  the  cause  of  Church  discipline,  and  thus  to  advance 
the  glory  of  God  and  the  welfare  of  mankind.  .  .  .  The 
grammar-schools  of  England  are  the  nurseries  of  the  Church, 
the  plantaria  ct  seniinaria  EcclesicE ;  this  is  their  true 
character?' 

His  remarks  on  Horace  and  Aristophanes  from  a 

'  "  The  Practical  Uses  of  Instruction  concerning  the  Church." 
(Discourse  V.  in  "  Discourses  on   Public  Education,"  published 

1844.) 

2  "On  the  Relations  of   School  Discipline  to  Church  Disci- 
pline." 


I 

4 


—  1848.]  HULSEAN  LECTURES.  445 

Christian  point  of  view,  are  very  valuable  ;^  but  his 
opinions  on  these  matters  have  been  already  noticed. 

Of  course  these  sermons  dwell  in  detail  on  many 
other  subjects  which  one  would  naturally  expect  to 
find  touched  upon  in  sermons  addressed  to  a  public 
school,  but  the  extracts  above  quoted  show  the  hinge 
on  which  all  the  preacher's  teaching  turned. 

In  1847  and  1848  Dr.  Wordsworth  delivered  the 
Hulsean  Lectures  at  Cambridge.  The  first  series  is 
"  On  the  Canon  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  of  the  Old 
and  New  Testaments,  and  on  the  Apocrypha  ;" 
the  second  "  On  the  Apocalypse  "  (see  p.  128).  The 
first  is  a  most  valuable  vindication  of  the  Canon, 
justifying  the  attitude  taken  by  the  English  Church,  as 
against  Rome  on  the  one  hand,  and  the  extreme 
advocates  of  private  judgment  on  the  other.  The 
preacher's  lucid  statement  of  the  true  position  and 
value  of  the  Apocrypha,  or,  as  he  prefers  to  term 
many  of  the  writings  which  go  by  that  name,  the 
Ecclesiastical  Books,  is  especially  worth  careful 
study  ;  and  since  he  addressed  himself  particularly, 
as  numerous  passages  in  his  lectures  show,  to  the 
younger  part  of  his  audience,  he  took  care  to  bring 
his  arguments  well  within  the  compass  of  the  popular 
comprehension.  Hence  the  volume  is  quite  as  much 
adapted  for  the  general  reader  as  for  the  specialist 
or  trained  divine,  though  the  immense  stores  of 
learning  from  which  he  drawls  can  be  properly  ap- 
preciated only  by  the  latter. 

^  See  "  Discourses  on  Public  Education,"  Sermon  XXII. 


446  LITERARY  WORK.  [1847— 

The  second  series,  on  the  Apocalypse,  deals  with 
the  most  profound  and  mysterious  subject  which  has 
ever  exercised  the  human  intellect,  a  subject  which 
has  called  forth  more  various  theories  and  interpre- 
tations than  any  which  could  be  named.  Dr.  Words- 
worth dealt  with  it,  as  he  was  sure  to  do  ;  that  is, 
with  the  utmost  courage  tempered  with  the  most 
profound  conviction  of  its  awful  sublimity  ;  believing 
not  only  that  its  every  detail  was  full  of  meaning, 
but  also  that  that  meaning  was  intended  to  be 
gathered  by  us.  Very  characteristically  he  begins 
by  grappling  boldly  with  a  question  which  was  more 
frequently  discussed  forty  years  ago  than  it  is  now — 
the  question  of  the  Millennium.  He  quotes  nume- 
rous texts. against  the  Millenarian,  and  discusses  with 
learning  and  ingenuity  the  one  text  (Rev.  xx.  i — 3) 
on  which  the  doctrine  mainly  rests. 

He  is  equally  explicit  on  the  vexed  question  as 
to  the  identity  of  Babylon  with  Papal  Rome  ;  and 
even  those  who  disagree  with  his  theory  entirely  will 
admit  that  he  maintains  it  not  only  with  learning 
and  ingenuity,  but  also  with  unfeigned  sorrow.  His 
words  on  this  point  are  so  striking  and  so  like  the 
man  that  they  must  be  quoted  : — 

The  Church  of  Rome,  my  brethren,  was  planted  by  the 
Apostles  of  Christ ;  it  was  watered  by  the  blood  of  martyrs  ; 
it  was  fostered  by  dews  from  heaven.  For  many  years  in 
succession  its  faith  was  spoken  of  through  all  the  world.  It 
was  long  the  burning  and  shining  light  of  Western  Christen- 
dom.    To  affirm,  then,  that  this  Church,  having  been  once 


—  1848.]  HULSEAN  LECTURES.  447 

espoused  as  a  chaste  virgin  to  Christ  by  Apostolic  hands, 
has  been  false  to  her  plighted  troth;  that  she  has  forgotten 
the  love  of  her  espousals  ;  that  she  has  allured,  and  still  al- 
lures, the  nations  of  the  earth  to  spiritual  adultery;  that  she 
is  portrayed  by  the  Holy  Spirit  in  the  Apocalypse  as  a 
second  Babylon;  that  she  is  designated  by  Him — not,  as  she 
claims  herself  to  be,  the  mother  and  mistress  of  all  Christian 
churches — but  as  the  mother  of  spiritual  fornications  and 
abominations  of  the  earth  ;  and  to  make  this  assertion 
publicly,  in  this  the  church  of  a  Christian  university,  is  to 
venture  upon  an  act  which  involves  the  deepest  responsibility, 
and  which  cannot  be  performed  except  with  feelings  of 
awe  and  emotions  of  bitterest  sorrow.  But  the  assertion, 
my  brethren,  is  now  solemnly,  deliberately  made,  made 
under  an  imperative  sense  of  duty,  made  in  your  ears,  in 
the  presence  and  house  of  God.     (Lecture  X.) 

Nor  must  we  suppose  that  the  Apocalyptic  pro- 
phecies concerning  the  Church  of  Rome  were  those 
which  exclusively  occupied  Dr.  Wordsworth's  atten- 
tion. In  his  Hulsean  Lectures  we  find  the  germs 
of  the  interpretation  of  Rev.  ix.  9,  which  he  after- 
wards expanded  in  a  striking  sermon  on  ''The 
Mahommedan  Woe,"  published  in  1876,  when  the 
thoughts  of  all  were  turned  tovv-ards  the  East  by  the 
troubles  in  Bulgaria.. 

In  fact  the  Apocalypse  was  a  book  which  Dr. 
Wordsworth  especially  loved,  partly  owing  to  his 
strong  sense  of  the  sublime  and  beautiful,  partly 
because  of  his  intense  belief  in  the  unity  of 
Holy  Scripture,  of  which  this  mysterious  book  was, 
in  his  opinion,  the  seal.  He  frequently  seems  to 
be  quite  rapt  in  his  glorious    theme  ;    and    no  one 


448  LITERARY  WORK.  [1849— 

can  rise  from  the  study  of  these  remarkable  lectures 
without — we  do  not  say  being  convinced  by  all  the 
arguments  adduced — but  without  an  increasing  sense 
of  the  acuteness,  erudition,  fervour,  and  charity  of 
the  writer,  and  also — what  he  would  have  far  more 
earnestly  desired — an  ever-deepening  awe  and  vene- 
ration for  the  marvellous  and  mysterious  Book  itself. 

Next  follow  Dr.  Wordsworth's  Westminster  Ser- 
mons, which  fill  several  volumes,  most  of  them 
published  under  the  title  of  "  Occasional  Sermons 
in  each  Year,  after  the  period  of  residence  during 
which  they  had  been  preached."  These  are  par- 
ticularly noteworthy,  because  it  was  in  the  pulpit 
of  W^estminster  Abbey,  more  than  anywhere  else, 
that  he  achieved  his  reputation  as  a  preacher.  As 
specimens  of  these  we  may  take  first  the  sermon 
entitled  "  Counsels  and  Consolations  in  Times  of 
Heresy  and  Schism,"  which  was  the  consequence 
of  the  secessions  to  Rome  in  1849.  In  the  case 
of  Archdeacon  Manning  especially  it  is  needless  to 
say  how  deeply  this  perversion  was  deplored  by 
one  who  had  known  him  and  his  family  from  boy- 
hood, and  who  had  done  all  that  in  him  lay  to  dis- 
suade him  from  the  step. 

The  next  group  of  "  Occasional  Sermons,"  which 
created  a  wide  interest  in  their  day,  is  on  the  Gorham 
case,  which,  it  will  be  remembered,  opened  up  the 
whole  question  of  Baptismal  Regeneration  as  taught 
by  our  Church.  No  more  helpful  treatise  can  be 
found,  within  a  moderate  compass,  on  that  subject  than 


iSsr.]  WESTMINSTER  SERMONS.  449 

these  extremely  able  and  carefully  studied  discourses. 
The  Romanists  were  not  slow  to  take  advantage 
of  the  unhappy  decision  of  the  Privy  Council  in 
the  Gorham  case,  as  may  be  seen  in  a  quotation 
from  a  sermon  of  Dr.  Wiseman  in  March,  1850, 
cited  by  Dr.  Wordsworth  in  his  sermon  on  "The 
Church  of  England  and  the  Church  of  Rome  in 
1850"  ("Occasional  Sermons,"  Vol.  I.  p.  195). 
Shortly  afterwards  Dr.  Wiseman  was  made  Cardinal 
Archbishop  of  Westminster,  and  this  evoked  a 
striking  sermon  on  "  Diotrephes  and  S.  John," 
and  some  others,  including  one  on  "  The  Dogma 
of  the  Immaculate  Conception,"  on  the  2nd  of 
February,  1851,  which  is  full  of  patristic  learning, 
as  well  as  of  vigorous  argument. 

Two  most  graceful  and  appropriate  sermons  on 
the  Great  Exhibition  of  1851  show  him  in  a  some- 
what different  light.  The  following  is  a  specimen 
of  the  way  in  which  he  treated  the  subject : — 

We  may  derive  a  lesson  of  meekness  and  of  wisdom  from 
a  consideration  of  the  perishableness  of  nations  and  national 
institutions,  compared  with  physical  power,  even  the  most 
insignificant.  What  a  lively  interest  attaches  itself  to  the 
name  of  Greece,  and  especially  to  that  of  Athens  !  What  a 
prominent  part  has  she  played  in  the  history  of  the  world  ! 
How  extensive  was  her  commerce,  how  valiant  her  prowess, 
how  victorious  her  armies,  how  renowned  her  arts,  her  elo- 
quence, and  her  laws.  And  how  is  she  represented  in  this 
Synod  of  Nations  .''  A  few  slabs  of  marble  drawn  from  the 
quarries  of  Pentelicus,  a  few  jars  of  honey  from  the  thyme- 
clad  slopes  of  Hymettus,  are  her  contributions  to  this  Great 
Exhibition.  While  her  population  has  been  subject  tovarious 

G  sr 


450  LITERARY  WORK.  [1851. 

vicissitudes,  while  her  civil  institutions  have  been  often 
changed  by  successive  revolutions,and  while  scarce  a  vestige 
remains  of  her  former  maritimeglory,the  humble  community 
of  the  bees  murmuring  among  the  purple  flowers  in  the  lonely 
dells  of  the  Athenian  mountains,  have  pursued  their  peace- 
ful labours,  undisturbed  by  chance  or  change,  from  genera- 
tion to  generation,  for  more  than  twenty  centuries,  and  the 
natural  veins  of  her  limestone  hills  teem  in  exhaustless 
abundance  with  their  snovz-white  marble,  as  fresh  as  when 
more  than  two  thousand  years  ago  those  noble  fabrics  of 
Athens, — the  Temple  of  Theseus,  the  Parthenon,  and  the 
Propylsea, — arose  in  stately  majesty  from  the  Pentelic 
quarry,  and  the  Panathenaic  Frieze,  sculptured  by  the 
chisel  of  Phidias,  issued  from  the  silent  chambers  of  the 
rock. 

So,  perhaps,  it  may  be  with  England.  The  time  may 
come  when  the  din  of  human  industry  may  cease  within 
her  borders,  and  then  it  will  appear  how  transitory  and 
fleeting  are  the  efforts  of  man,  and  how  short-lived  is  his 
glory,  contrasted  even  with  inanimate  powers,  or  with  those 
of  irrational  creatures  and  vegetable  life. 

When  the  mills  of  Manchester  are  silent,  and  the  forges 
of  Birmingham  echo  no  more  ;  when  the  furnaces  of  Glas- 
gow arc  extinct,  and  the  docks  of  Liverpool  are  untenanted; 
when  few  vessels  of  commerce  or  of  war  may  be  seen  floating 
on  the  bosom  of  the  Thames  and  in  the  harbours  of  England; 
when  some  of  the  streets  of  London  may  be  overgrown 
with  grass,  or  almost  choked  with  sand, — then,  in  some 
foreign  exhibition,  in  some  distant  clime,  in  some  future 
age,  the  wealth  and  glory  of  Britain  may  be  represented 
not  (as  now)  by  the  produce  of  her  smoking  factories,  but 
by  some  lowly  herbs  culled  in  her  woods  or  meadows,  or  at 
the  side  of  her  winding  brooks,  or  by  the  mineral  produce 
of  her  native  hills. 

The    sul)jcct  of  education  next  engaged  his   at- 
tention.    The  year   1851    was   a   landmark    in  the 


1851.]  WESTMINSTER  SERMONS.  451 

national  history,  not  only  on  account  of  the  com- 
pletion of  the  Great  Exhibition,  but  because  it  saw 
the  rise  of  much  which  has  assumicd  more  serious 
proportions  since.  A  work  bearing  the  title  of  "  A 
Scheme  for  Secular  Education  "  was  published  in 
London  and  at  Manchester  in  1851.  It  suggested 
a  system  under  which  "  the  children  in  those  schools 
which  it  is  proposed  to  erect  should  be  instructed 
in  such  kinds  of  useful  knowledge  as  the  growing 
intelligence  of  the  people  may  demand,''  that  "  the 
schools  shall  impart  seatlar  insti'ttction  only,'"  &c. 

This  produced  a  sermon  which  may  well  be 
studied  in  our  own  day,  "On  Secular  Education," 
followed  by  another  "  On  the  Use  of  the  Church 
Catechism,  &c.,"  in  which  the  preacher  warmly  advo- 
cated the  cause  of  the  National  Society,  of  which 
he  was  a  most  active  member. 

A  sermon  on  an  Education  Rate  shows  how  grace- 
fully he  could  adapt  his  classical  learning  to  modern 
needs : — 

Who  does  not  recollect  with  pleasure  that  beautiful  pic- 
ture drawn  by  the  Roman  poet  of  his  own  affection  for  his 
father  ?  Many  of  my  younger  hearers  in  this  ancient  and 
royal  college  will  remember  the  passage  with  delight,  and 
perhaps  it  will  touch  the  tenderest  feelings  in  the  hearts  of 
some  among  them  by  reminding  them  of  the  sacrifices 
which  t/iezr  parents  have  made  and  are  making  for  their 
sakes,  particularly  for  their  education.  Well  then,  my 
brethren,  this  Roman  father,  this  heathen  parent  to  whom  I 
refer,  and  who  was  not  a  rich  man,  but  a  poor  one — macro 
pauper  agello — did  not  set  himself  to  calculate,  with  parsi- 
monious anxiety,  for  how  little  he  could  educate  his  son  ;  he 

G  g   2 


452  LITERARY  WORK.  [1852. 

did  not  wish  to  be  relieved oi  his  child  by  an  Education  Rate; 
he  would  not  send  him  to  one  of  those  dearest  of  all  places 
— dearest  often,  I  mean,  in  moral  and  intellectual  loss — a 
cheap  school.  .  .  .  And  what,  my  brethren,  was  the  result  ? 
He  gained  his  son's  heart  for  ever.  He  inspired  him  with 
feelings  of  affectionate  gratitude  and  filial  reverence,  to 
which  his  son  has  given  expression  in  words  that  will  never 
die  : — 

"  Nil  me  poeniteat  sanuin  patris  hujus." 

Such  is  his  testimony.  On  the  other  hand,  it  may  be  re- 
membered that  another  Latin  poet,  living  about  a  century 
after  him  to  whom  we  have  just  referred,  and  portraying 
the  selfish  luxury  of  his  own  age,  sums  up  the  melancholy 
description  in  which  he  displays  the  degraded  condition  to 
which  the  State  was  reduced,  by  saying  that  men  would 
make  any  sacrifice  for  their  own  appetite  or  ambition,  but 
not  for  the  education  of  their  children. 

The  sermons  on  "  The  History  of  the  Church  of 
Ireland"  form  part  of  the  same  series,  (see  p.  132) 
being  preached  at  Westminster  Abbey  in  1852. 
They  are  peculiarly  interesting,  as  dealing  with 
a  subject  not  very  well  known.  Of  course  the 
preacher  views  it  from  a  distinctly  Anglican 
standpoint,  and  his  conclusions  would,  no  doubt, 
be  challenged  both  by  Romanists  and  Orange- 
men. But  Dr.  Wordsworth  was  not  a  man  who 
could  easily  be  impugned  in  his  facts  ;  the  most 
that  could  be  complained  of  would  be  the  colour- 
ing that  he  puts  upon  those  facts.  He  begins,  of 
course,  with  S.  Patrick,  and  maintains  that  though 
the  great  Apostle  of  Ireland  was  not  opposed  to 
Rome,   as  she   then  was,    yet  he  was  not   sent  by 


1852.]  SERMONS  ON  CHURCH  Oh  IRELAND.  453 

Rome,  and  that  his  Creed  (which  he  quotes)  was 
something  very  different  from  the-  Tridentine  con- 
fession :  "S.  Patrick  and  the  Church  of  S.  Patrick 
were  independent  and  free."  From  the  age  of  S. 
Patrick  we  pass  on  to  the  age  of  S.  Columba,  whose 
mission  he  compares  with  that  of  S.  Augustine  from 
Rome,  much  to  the  advantage  of  the  former.  He 
contends  that  "  in  the  sixth  and  seventh  centuries 
the  ancient  churches  of  Ireland  and  Britain  were  of 
one  mind.  They  did  not  acknowledge  that  the 
Bishop  of  Rome  had  supremacy ;  no,  they  did  not 
acknowledge  that  he  had  any  jurisdiction  over  them  ; 
and  when  Rome  put  forth  a  claim  to  jurisdiction  by 
requiring  conformity  to  her  own  usages,  it  produced 
a  rupture  between  them  and  her."  How  and  when, 
then,  did  Rome  become  dominant  in  Ireland?  "  It 
was,"  says  the  preacher,  "through  the  agency  of  the 
Anglo-Norman  Church,  which  had  already  fallen 
under  the  yoke  of  Rome,  that  the  ancient  Church  of 
Ireland  was  brought  under  the  Papal  sway  in  the 
course  of  the  eleventh  century.  Anselm  and  Lan- 
franc  consecrated  bishops  for  Dublin,  Limerick,  and 
Waterford.  Canterbury  did  the  work  of  Rome. 
By  means  of  England  a  schism  was  introduced,  and 
a  footing  gained  for  Rome  in  Ireland."  He  then 
shows  that  it  was  not  until  the  twelfth  century  that 
the  first  Papal  Legate  was  sent  to  Ireland  (a.d. 
1 106),  and  that  an  Irish  archbishop  first  received, 
the  pallium  from  Rome  (a.d.  i  151).  King  Henry  II. 
resorted  to  Rome  for  aid  in  the  conquest  of  Ireland. 


454  LITERARY  WORK.  [1852— 

England  was  under  a  mysterious  fascination,  she 
was  spellbound  by  Rome.  The  whole  matter  is 
thus  eloquently  and  lucidly  summed  up  : — 

Christianity  in  a  pure,  Apostolic  form  was  planted  in 
Ireland  early  in  the  fifth  century,  and  for  many  centuries 
after,  Ireland  was  free.  Then  Ireland  was  one  of  the 
brightest  luminaries  of  Western  Christendom  ;  illustrious 
for  piety  and  sanctity,  the  seat  of  literature  and  learning. 
She  flourished  in  prosperity  and  peace,  and  evangelized 
Scotland  and  England  by  her  missionaries.  But  from  the 
twelfth  century  to  this  day  the  shadow  of  Rome  has  hung 
over  the  land  like  the  deadly  shade  of  some  dark  tree, 
which  chills  life  and  checks  vegetation  beneath  it.  Eng- 
land owes  to  the  Church  of  Ireland  a  debt  which  has  been 
accumulating  for  700  years.  We  then  enslaved  Ireland  ; 
we  ought  now  to  emancipate  her ! 

The  preacher  contends  that  after  the  twelfth  cen- 
tury, for  more  than  three  centuries  scarcely  a  single 
memorable  name  in  the  Church  of  Ireland  can  be 
cited.  "The  rise  of  the  Papal  power  was  a  signal 
for  a  general  collapse, — Intellectual,  literary,  and 
religious."  From  the  time  of  Henry  II.  to  the  time 
of  Henry  VIII.  was  a  period  of  deadly  feuds.  This 
Ijrings  us  to  the  era  of  the  Reformation,  which,  Dr. 
Wordsworth  strongly  argues,  was  effected  in  Ireland, 
as  it  was  in  England,  by  the  Church  Itself.  There 
was  no  House  of  Convocation  In  Ireland,  therefore 
the  Irish  Episcopate  was  sufficient  ecclesiastical 
authority ;  and  as  the  Irish  Episcopate  accepted  and 
effected  the  Reformation,  the  Church  of  Ireland  re- 
formed Itself.  The  terrible  hindrances  which  this 
ancient  Church  has  met  with  since,  the  long  want  of 


1 


— 1857-]  CHURCH  OF  IRELAND— BOYLE  LECTURES.     455 

Bible  and  Prayer-book  in  the  Irish  language,  the 
sacrilege  which  was  perpetrated,  the  alienation  of 
tithes,  the  prevalence  of  Puritanism  as  the  inevitable 
reaction  from  Popery,  are  feelingly  dwelt  upon  ;  but, 
in  spite  of  these  hindrances,  the  preacher  shows  that 
the  Church  of  Ireland  since  the  Reformation  can 
show  a  list  of  great  names  such  as  no  other  religious 
community  could  boast.  "  No  Roman  Catholics  in 
Ireland  produced  a  single  theological  work  of  ac- 
knowledged celebrity  ;  but  the  National  Church  of 
Ireland  has  had  her  Usshers,  her  Bedells,  her  Bram- 
halls,  her  Jeremy  Taylors,  her  Boyles,  her  Berkeleys, 
her  Edmund  Burkes,  her  Alexander  Knoxes " — a 
brilliant  galaxy  indeed.  The  preacher's  stirring  ap- 
peal in  favour  of  maintaining  the  Irish  Church  as  an 
Established  Church  will  not,  perhaps,  appear  quite  so 
vain  now  as  it  might  have  done  twenty  years  ago, 
when  the  experiment  was  in  its  infancy.  It  is  in- 
teresting to  compare  these  sermons  with  another 
history  of  the  Church  of  Ireland  thirty-five  years 
later ;  the  calm,  judicial  impartiality  of  Dr.  Ball  is 
markedly  contrasted  with  the  fire  and  vehemence 
of  Dr.  Wordsworth,  but  we  doubt  whether  there  is 
any  substantial  difference  as  to  facts  between  the 
clergyman  and  the  layman. 

An  important  group  of  sermons  belongs  to  the 
years  1854 — 1857,  of  which  the  leading  ideas  may 
be  said  to  be  personal  sanctity  and  domestic  purity. 
It  contains  the  Boyle  Lectures  (nine)  on  Religious 
Restoration. 


456  LITERARY  WORK.  [1869— 

Before  we  quit  the  "Occasional  Sermons,"  we 
venture  to  suggest  that,  as  they  have  never  been 
collected  into  a  separate  or  single  work,  this  might 
be  done.  They  could  be  compressed  within  two 
volumes  octavo,  and  if  so  published,  with  a  good 
index,  they  would  form  a  most  interesting  and 
valuable  addition  to  the  library  of  the  theological 
student. 

We  now  come  to  the  sermons  preached  by  Dr. 
Wordsworth  during  his  episcopate.  There  is  a 
cynical  saying,  "  Make  a  bishop  and  spoil  a 
preacher."  It  would  be  too  much  to  say  that  in  the 
case  of  Dr.  Wordsworth  the  reverse  would  be  nearer 
the  truth  ;  but  it  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  his 
episcopate  gave  larger  scope  for  a  kind  of  preaching 
in  which  he  peculiarly  excelled.  A  bishop's  ser- 
mons, more  frequently  than  those  of  any  other 
preacher,  are  required  for  great  occasions, — for 
occasions  connected  with  some  important  local  event, 
and  often  some  event  which  has  its  associations  with 
the  past.  Now,  no  one  could  better  rise  to  a  great 
occasion  than  the  Bishop  of  Lincoln ;  no  one  could 
more  gracefully  connect  the  present  with  associa- 
tions of  the  past.  His  poetical  cast  of  mind  led  him 
to  welcome  such  opportunities  con  auiore ;  they  ap- 
pealed to  his  imagination  ;  and  his  vast  stores  of 
historical  knowledge  enabled  him  to  make  the  most 
of  them.  Hence  his  "official  sermons"  (if  we  may 
use  the  expression)  as  bishop  were  never  what  has 
been    irreverently   termed   "sermons  wilh   a   tail;" 


— 1885.J  SERMONS  AS  BISHOP.  457 

that  is,  'sermons  that  would  do  for  any  occasion, 
with  a  Httle  appendix  tacked  on,  more  or  less 
ingeniously,  to  suit  the  particular  circumstances. 
He  could  always  throw  himself  without  an  effort 
into  the  spirit  of  the  occasion  ;  he  regarded  the  cir- 
cumstances which  called  for  his  presence  with  a  poet's 
eye  and  with  an  historian's  knowledge.  Let  us  take 
one  or  two  instances.  When  he  was  called  upon  to 
preach,  at  the  restoration  of  the  church  of  Colster- 
worth,  the  parish  in  which  Sir  Isaac  Newton  was 
born,  he  seized  the  opportunity  to  dwell  at  length  on 
the  great  philosopher's  career.  When  he  preached 
at  the  opening  of  Clee  Church,  in  which  there  was  a 
Latin  inscription  "  on  the  slab  in  one  of  the  Norman 
piers  near  the  south  porch  "  to  the  effect  that  that 
church  was  consecrated  "  in  the  year  of  Our  Lord, 
1 192,  by  Hugh,  Bishop  of  Lincoln,  in  the  time  of 
King  Richard,"  it  was  no  effort  to  him  to  draw 
from  the  fulness  of  his  stores,  a  sketch  of  the  con- 
tinuity of  the  English  Church  for  700  years.  When 
he  preached  at  Brant  Broughton,  he  turned,  as  it 
were,  naturally  to  a  former  rector,  the  famous 
William  W^arburton,  with  whose  writings  (as  the 
present  writer  happens  to  know)  he  had  a  singularly 
minute  acquaintance.  When  he  preached  at  Ep- 
worth  it  was  a  real  delight  to  him  to  dwell  from  the 
pulpit  on  the  fine  epitaph  on  Samuel  Wesley  already 
quoted.  When  he  preached  at  Benniworth,  after  a 
journey  on  the  newly-opened  railway  between  Louth 
and  Lincoln,   he  took  the   opportunity  of  showing 


458  LITERARY  WORK.  \\%H 

how  the  great  miUtary  roads  of  the  Romans  had 
opened  the  way  to  the  spread  of  the  Gospel,  and 
vividly  described  S.  Paul's  journeys  along  the  Egna- 
tian  and  the  Appian  ways.  In  fact  there  was  rarely 
a  place  or  an  occasion  on  which  he  was  called  to 
preach,  when  he  could  not  utilize  some  local  event 
which  took  his  sermon  quite  out  of  the  ordinary 
groove.  Among  his  episcopal  sermons  those  on  the 
Maccabees,  preached  at  Cambridge  in  1871,  ought  to 
be  noticed ;  but  we  must  be  content  to  refer  the 
reader  to  these  admirable  discourses. 

We  must  not  close  this  sketch  of  Dr.  Words- 
worth's literary  work  without  noticing  two  pub- 
lications to  which  an  almost  sacred  interest  is 
attached ;  for,  if  they  were  not  exactly  his  dying 
utterances,  they  were  both  written  after  the  "  begin- 
ning of  the  end "  had  come.  One  is  a  paper  on 
"  John  Wiclif,"  which  he  wrote  for  the  Lincoln 
Diocesan  Conference  in  October,  1884,  but  was  too 
ill  to  read  himself.  It  will  be  remembered  that  a 
hot  controversy  was  then  going  on  about  the  cele- 
bration of  the  Wiclif  Tercentenary  ;  the  Bishop,  with 
characteristic  fearlessness,  sums  up  impartially  the 
strong  and  the  weak  points  of  Wiclif's  career,  re- 
gardless of  the  attacks  of  both  sides — Wicliffites 
and  anti-Wicliffites — which  he  might  reasonably 
expect.  The  other  is  a  little  volume  entitled 
"  How  to  Read  the  Old  Testament,"  and  was 
"written  at  Harewood  during  December,  1884, 
and    January,    1885,  and    given  by    the  author    to 


I 


1 884.]  LAST  WORKS.  459 

his  daughter,  Priscilla  Steedman,  as  a  legacy  for 
his  grandchildren."  The  reader  will  observe  that 
it  was  written  when  the  hand  of  death  was  already 
upon  him,  and  it  is  perfectly  marvellous  to  see  how 
clear  his  intellectual  faculties  must  have  been,  even 
after  his  bodily  powers  were  hopelessly  shattered. 
For  the  book  is  not,  as  one  might  have  guessed 
from  the  Preface,  an  ordinary  child's  book,  which 
could  be  written  without  much  mental  effort.  It  is  a 
brief,  but  very  thorough,  though  simple,  sketch  of  the 
spiritual  or  m^^stical  interpretation  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment, a  subject  which  would  keep  the  intellectual 
powers  of  a  scholar  in  the  prime  of  life  and  vigour 
at  their  fullest  strain.  And  there  is  not  the  slightest 
trace  of  falling  off,  either  in  the  matter  or  the  style. 
If  one  read  it  without  knowing  the  date  of  its  com- 
position it  would  be  impossible  to  give  any  reason 
for  attributing  it  to  one  part  of  his  life  more  than 
another,  except  that  one  might  guess  that  it  be- 
longed to  the  period  when  his  mind  was  more  than 
ever  imbued  with  scriptural  knowledge.  It  seems  to 
us  one  of  the  most  striking  instances  conceivable  of 
a  man's  mental  vitality  and  activity  surviving  his 
bodily. 

To  sum  up  the  character  of  Dr.  Wordsworth's 
literary  work.  Its  chief  feature  was  its  extraordinary 
copiousness,  lucidity,  accuracy,  and  variety.  Dr. 
Johnson  objected  to  the  poet  Gray  that  "  he  was  a 
barren  rascal,"  because  he  produced  so  little.  The 
same  objection  could  certainly  not  be  alleged  against 


46o  LITERARY  WORK.  [1884. 

Dr.  Wordsworth.  Of  course  mere  bulk  is  no  test 
of  merit.  The  writer  of  one  Httle  story,  "  The  Vicar 
of  Wakefield,"  has  achieved  a  higher  reputation  as  a 
novelist  than  many  who  have  written  whole  libraries 
full  of  romance.  But  there  is,  after  all,  something  to 
be  said  for  fertility  in  composition,  unless  indeed  the 
work  composed  be  absolutely  without  value,  and  no 
one  can  say  that  of  even  the  poorest  of  Dr.  Words- 
worth's writings.  It  may  be  admitted  that  much  of 
his  work  would  have  been  better  for  condensation. 
But  the  wonder  is  that  one  who  poured  forth  so  vast 
an  amount  of  matter  could  have  maintained  so  uni- 
formly high  a  level,  and  that  one  with  whom  the  graces 
of  composition  occupied  at  all  times  a  secondary 
place,  could  have  written  so  much  that  is  graceful. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

CLOSING  DAYS. 

We  must  now  enter  upon  the  closing  chapter  of 
the  Bishop's  Hfe,  of  which  the  last  few  years  were 
marked  (as  the  Appian  way,  before  reaching  Rome,  is 
marked  by  tombs)  by  the  graves  of  his  dear  friends. 
In  1878  he  lost  his  beloved  sister-in-law,  Miss  Frere, 
very  shortly  after  the  completion  of  her  seventieth 
year,  on  which  occasion  he  had  written  her  a 
characteristic  letter  full  of  affection,  and  of  half- 
playful  reference  to  the  "  perfect  number  "  which  her 
days  had  reached.  A  dear  brother-in-law,  Mr. 
George  Frere,  had  died  not  long  before.  Bishop 
Selwyn  had  passed  away  in  1878.  The  last  time  when 
the*two  bishops  and  their  families  met  in  anything  like 
prolonged  and  happy  intercourse  was  at  the  Lakes  in 
the  summer  of  1877  ;  ^^'^  ^^^  survivors  well  remember 
a  delightful  day  at  Coniston  when  the  two  bishops 
and  Mr.  [now  Lord]  Cross  had  an  informal  meet- 
ing to  discuss  the  affairs  of  the  Southwell  Diocese, 
which,  it  will  be  remembered,  affected  Lichfield 
no  less  than  Lincoln.  A  still  more  delightful  day 
was  that  of  their  visit  to  Easedale,  where  Bishop 
Wordsworth  and  his  family  occupied  Mr.  Fletcher's 
house,  and  one  long  afternoon  was  spent  by  the  com- 


462  CLOSING  DAYS.  [1882. 

bined  party  rambling  along  the  side  of  the  Rotha, 
in  the  familiar  ground  where  so  much  of  the 
"Excursion"  had  been  composed,  up  Sour  Milk 
Ghyll,  and  to  Easedale  Tarn.  Dean  Jeremie  had 
died  some  little  time  before,  and  his  place  had 
been  taken  by  Dr.  Blakesley,  who  shared  with 
the  Bishop  many  early  Cambridge  recollections ; 
Lord  Charles  Hervey,  always  delicate  and  suffering 
in  health,  though  a  younger  man,  had  preceded 
his  old  college  friend  to  a  better  world  ;  the 
brilliant  light  of  Bishop  Wilberforce  had,  as  we 
have  seen,  suddenly  gone  out ;  Lord  Beaconsfield 
closed  his  eventful  career  in  1881  ;  Dr.  Pusey's  long 
life  had  terminated  in  1882  ;  Sir  Bartle  Frere,  a 
kindred  spirit  in  more  senses  than  one,  passed 
away  in  1884;  and  another  dear  friend  and  con- 
nection by  marriage,  the  Rev.  H.  O.  Coxe,  had 
died  in  1881,  leaving  an  irreparable  blank  behind 
him.  In  the  diocese  and  county  of  Lincoln  death 
had  been  no  less  busy.  Bishop  Mackenzie  had  gone 
to  his  rest  in  1878,  and  many  a  name  will  suggest 
itself  to  some  at  least  of  the  readers  of  this  bio- 
graphy, of  good  men  and  women,  honoured  and 
well  known,  whose  deaths  had  seemed  in  turn  like 
another  grave  and  reverberating  stroke  of  the  knell 
which  rings  for  all. 

With  the   noble  and  affecting  words  at  the  end 
of  his   last    charge,^  the    Bishop    may   be  said — in 
a  certain   sense — to  have  closed  his  public  career. 
'  See  supra,  p.  342. 


i882.]  BEGINNING  OF  SORROW.  463 

Assuredly  there  could  have  been  none  better  fitted  to 
express  his  feelings  in  looking  backward  over  a  long 
life,  and  forward  to  the  infinite  and  eternal  future. 
But  he  was  still  comparatively  vigorous,  more  so 
than  many  a  younger  man,  and  often  astonished  those 
about  him  by  the  display  of  mental  and  bodily  power. 
Well  does  the  writer  of  these  pages  remember,  a  little 
later  than  this,  a  conversation  with  Mark  Pattison, 
then  Rector  of  Lincoln  College,  who  inquired  with 
some  interest  as  to  the  health  and  physical  capabilities 
of  the  visitor  of  his  college,  with  whom,  as  is  well 
known,  he  had  had  some  not  unfriendly  controversy 
with  regard  to  the  right  of  appointing  a  clerical  fellow 
in  the  college,  which  was  decided  in  the  Bishop's 
favour.  The  contrast  between  the  infirm  and  fragile 
and  almost  cadaverous  invalid  in  his  bath-chair,  and 
the  bright,  hale,  and  vigorous  old  age  of  the  Bishop 
was  very  remarkable. 

Hitherto  little  trouble  had  come  within  the  family 
circle.  The  gaps  had  been  all  made  by  the  happy 
marriages  of  two  sons  and  three  daughters.  In  1882 
the  illness  and  death  of  a  valued  servant  seemed  like 
the  first  appearance  of  a  cloud  on  the  horizon,  which 
soon  was  to  overspread  the  entire  sky.  Next  came 
seasons  of  great  anxiety  on  account  of  Mrs.  Words- 
worth, who  with  a  heroism  of  which  few  of  the  young 
and  strong  would  have  been  capable,  had  accompanied 
her  husband  on  his  diocesan  journeys  with  uncom- 
plaining cheerfulness  at  a  time  when  she  herself 
needed  careful  nursing   and  repose.     After  one  or 


464  CLOSING  DAYS.  [1883. 

two  premonitory  attacks,  she  completely  broke  down 
during  a  Confirmation  tour  in  the  spring  of  1883,  and 
had  to  withdraw  to  Harewood,  near  Leeds,  the  resi- 
dence of  her  son-in-law,  P.  A.  Steedman,  Esq.,  to 
whose  professional  skill  and  unselfish  affection  both 
she  and  the  Bishop  felt  they  owed  a  debt  of  gratitude 
which  could  never  be  repaid.  The  daughter  who 
endeavoured  to  take  her  place  for  the  short  remainder 
of  that  Confirmation  tour  will  not  easily  forget  the 
extraordinary  and  various  work  which  the  Bishop 
compressed  into  four  or  five  days.  It  comprised 
a  Confirmation  and  an  address  to  Sunday-school 
teachers  in  S  .Mary's,  Nottingham,  a  journey  the  next 
day  to  Worksop,  and  a  Confirmation  there.  The  same 
evening  he  proceeded  to  dine  and  sleep  at  the  Duke 
of  Newcastle's  (Clumber),  where  he  was  kindly  re- 
ceived by  Lord  and  Lady  Edward  Clinton ;  and  all 
this  involved  constant  exertion  in  the  way  of  conver- 
sation at  spare  moments  when  not  in  church,  and  with 
people  of  the  most  varied  characters — Canon  Morse 
and  his  family,  and  their  guests,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Short- 
house,^  the  Nottinghamshire  clergy  and  aristocracy, 
&c.  At  Clumber  he  addressed  the  servants  in  the 
library  on  the  morning  of  the  Tuesday  before  Easter 
in  a  manner  suitable  to  the  season.  He  never  left  a 
country-house  without  trying  to  do  something  of  this 
kind  for  the  servants.  Afterwards  he  went  on  to  the 
colliery  districts  and  spent  two  nights  at  Annesley, 
under  the  roof  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Prance,  holding  Con- 
-  The  aullior  of  "  John  Inglcsant." 


I 


1883.]  ILLNESS  OF  MR.   WORDS  WORTH.  465 

firmations  there  and  at  Sutton-in-Ashfield.  He  then 
returned  to  Nottingham  for  another  confirmation  and 
a  farewell  meeting  of  the  clergy.  On  the  following 
Thursday  he  returned  to  Riseholme,  to  be  greeted 
with  the  sad  news  of  Mrs.  Wordsworth's  increased 
illness.  Good  Friday  was,  of  course,  a  day  of  com- 
parative quiet.  On  the  Saturday  he  drove  to  Dunham 
to  hold  another  Confirmation.  Easter  Day  was  spent 
quietly  at  Riseholme.  In  the  evening,  as  was  his 
custom,  he  had  a  Bible-class  for  the  younger  servants, 
at  the  close  of  which,  we  believe,  he  commended  their 
sick  mistress  most  touchingly  to  their  prayers.  On 
Easter  Monday,  worn  and  out  of  health  as  he  himself 
was,  he  started  alone  for  Hare  wood,  as  the  house  was 
not  large  enough  to  afford  accommodation  for  any 
additional  guests.  Mrs.  Wordsworth  rallied  for  a 
time,  and  was  able  eventually  to  return  with  him  to 
Riseholme,  but  things  never  seemed  the  same  after- 
wards. 

Twice  in  the  summer  of  1883  he  travelled  up  to 
London  on  purpose  to  vote,  at  the  second  and  third 
readings,  against  the  Bill  for  legalizing  marriage  with 
a  deceased  wife's  sister. 

In  the  autumn  of  1883  he  had  also  the  very  great 
pleasure  of  visiting  Rochester,  where  his  eldest  son 
had  recently  been